


They Say the Truth Will Set You Free (They Don't Tell You It Can Take Your Freedom Away)

by FreckledAvenger11



Category: Spider-Man (Tom Holland Movies), The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Avengers: Infinity War Part 1 (Movie) Spoilers, F/M, Kidnapped Peter Parker, Peter Parker Needs a Hug, Peter Parker Whump, Post-Captain America: Civil War (Movie), Post-Spider-Man: Homecoming, Precious Peter Parker, Tony Stark Acting as Peter Parker's Parental Figure, Tony Stark Has A Heart, Tony Stark Needs a Hug
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-02-24
Updated: 2020-02-25
Packaged: 2021-02-27 21:42:22
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 14
Words: 53,181
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22862713
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/FreckledAvenger11/pseuds/FreckledAvenger11
Summary: Previously posted as "To Tell the Truth" on FF.net. May knows the truth about Peter. Both Peter and Tony have to answer to May about keeping this secret from her. Secretary Ross is also pressuring Tony to do things like reveal Spider-Man's identity and help track down the rogue Avengers. With things coming to the surface, can Tony, May, and Pepper protect Peter from harm before it's too late? Father & Son relationship. Rating for language and future violence. (Ch. 1-11 are mostly character building; Action starts Ch. 12).
Relationships: James "Bucky" Barnes & Peter Parker & Steve Rogers, May Parker (Spider-Man) & Peter Parker, Michelle Jones/Peter Parker, Pepper Potts/Tony Stark, Peter Parker & Tony Stark
Comments: 3
Kudos: 27





	1. What the F---?

**Author's Note:**

  * Inspired by [To Tell the Truth](https://archiveofourown.org/external_works/561901) by FreckledAngel11. 



> This work was originally posted to FanFiction.net with the title "To Tell the Truth" under the username "FreckledAngel11." I have spent some time editing my original work (fixing mistakes and adding some more detail). This is meant to be the new and improved version. This fic was written to take place after Spider-Man: Homecoming and before Avengers: Infinity War. It was written to feel as if it could've happened between films. I am debating on whether or not to create an alternate ending to give previous reviewers some heart-warming moments that I left out of the original work. Time will tell. These characters belong to Marvel. I am simply borrowing them. Enjoy!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> That moment... when you're aunt learns the truth about your "extracurricular" activities.

Peter was beyond happy. Mr. Stark returned the Spider-Man suit he made for Peter, and this helped Peter to somehow feel  _ whole _ again. It was a relief. He was proud, too, because he knew that he had managed to regain Mr. Stark's trust. All was well in Peter’s world as he put on the red and blue fabric and pressed the Spider emblem to fit it perfectly to his form. Peter turned towards the window, taking in the view of Queens. He was eager to go out as his alter ego, yet he also knew it would be best to wait a little. He should really find out where May was first. He reached up and removed his mask. All he could think about was just how great it was to be Spider-Man… he should have focused more on where May was. 

"What the F***?" May exclaimed from behind him.

Peter froze. He was afraid to turn around. _"Oh shit,"_ he thought, _"What do I do now?"_ A thousand excuses were swirling through his brain, but none seemed sufficient enough to say out loud. This was his aunt, he would need to turn around and face her. After everything that she'd been through, she deserved Peter's honesty. He sucked in a breath and slowly turned around to face her.

What he saw on May's face both surprised and scared him. He expected her to be angry, but she looked more scared…panicked even.

"What is this?" she questioned. "This can't be real! It. Can. NOT. Be. Real!! What are you wearing?!" Her arms moved quickly and she started backing away from him nervously, shaking her head back and forth. “Peter… what the HELL is going on here? What? Where? Why?” 

May was firing questions too fast for Peter to answer. He took a step towards her. "May…" he tried to break into her rambling, but she just continued. His hands were up in a placating gesture, trying to show her that she needed to be calm. He wanted to explain.

"I heard you come home. I heard you call my name. I thought about answering, but I thought maybe it would be better to stay quiet. I wanted to see what you would do. All the secrets. Leaving the house at night. Detention. Trouble at school. I knew there had to be an explanation, Peter, but this is crazy! Why are you wearing that?" May asked once more. Her breathing came quickly. She put a hand to her chest and another to her head.

Peter was afraid that she might pass out, so he came forward and helped her to their couch. She didn't fight him. She was too shocked. May allowed Peter to guide her into a sitting position, and then he brought her hands down to her lap and kept one of his hands there, trying to offer her reassurance.

"Aunt May…try to calm down. Take deep breaths. I'll tell you everythi…"

"TELL ME EVERYTHING?" She cut in, her voice holding more anger and irritation now. "Is this what it takes for me to learn the truth? There wasn't an easier way for me to find out? It had to be like this?" Her voice started out loud but slowly fell to a broken whisper. "I thought you trusted me, Peter. I thought we were honest with one another." The tears started to fall down her cheeks, and it was enough to drop Peter's heart into his stomach. He could literally feel the guilt washing over him. 

Peter took a deep breath, holding in tears of his own. "I didn't ask for this, Aunt May. It happened so unexpectedly. I didn't know how to tell you, but yes…I am Spider-Man."

May gave him a look and put her hands up towards his suit as if to say,  _ "Duh! Obviously!" _ . But she remained quiet, and clearly wished for him to continue with an explanation.

Peter stuttered nervously, "God, May..." he rubbed a hand nervously through his hair. "I know I should have said something. I thought about this so many times, but I could never think of the right thing to say. You've been through so much!  _ We've _ been through so much! I didn't know how to tell you that my body changed after a radioactive spider bit me! It seemed crazy. I knew you would worry, and I hate to make you worry."

"A spider, Peter? Seriously? What…"

"…It was on that field trip to OsCorp about a year ago. Remember how sick I was when I got home? Remember how much better I felt after a day? That's why I didn't need my glasses anymore. My senses improved. I'm stronger, healthier. I heal quickly, too! I was trying to figure out if or how to talk to you, but then Uncle Ben…" Peter's voice cracked, and a tear slipped from each eye, falling slowly down his cheek. He looked up into his aunt's eyes. They held each other's gaze for a moment before his aunt spoke.

"Ok…hold on. So, you've kept this to yourself all this time? A whole year? For what? To spare me the worry?" She huffed, "Peter, I will always worry about you! Hell, I've been even more worried about you! Do you really think that I didn't suspect something? I didn't push because I was afraid that I would push you away if I asked too many questions!" She sighed by adding, "Ben always told me to be patient and give you space. He believed that you held things in but would open up in your own time." She looked up at him, "If I hadn't seen you today, would you have told me?"

Peter thought for a moment. "May, I... honestly… I don't know. I didn't think anyone should know. Ned found out a few months ago by accident. It's a huge secret to keep, and it hasn't been easy for him since he found out. Telling you… You knowing now… it scares me, May. It truly scares me. It puts you at risk. I want to protect you, Aunt May. I  _ need _ to protect you. You’re all I have left, and I can't lose you." He looked at his aunt, hoping she could understand. His breathing came faster, and he was trying really hard to keep himself together.

"Ned knows?" She gave a small laugh. "I guess that explains why his mother mentioned him talking about you and Spider-Man knowing each other." May talked faster as she recalled the memory, "I ran into her at the grocery store, and she started talking about how excited Ned was to have a friend with a connection to the Avengers! I told myself that he was just exaggerating something to his mom. Or maybe you were trying to impress your friends with the Stark Internship…" May's eyes went wide, as if hit by a sudden realization. "Wait! The internship… Is there even an internship, or…"

Peter finished her thought, "Well..." He pointed to his suit, "This is the internship. Mr. Stark made this suit for me. He needed my help in Germany, and then he let me keep this."  _ Until he took it away and I fought the Vulture in a sweatsuit while hanging on to the outside of a jet _ . But he decided to keep that last part to himself at the moment.

Aunt May's face turned angry. "Stark? Of course he made this suit for you! He's enabling you… putting you in harm's way. I saw footage of the Avengers fighting each other at the airport in Germany! It was on the news! You could've been seriously hurt! How could he take a kid there? Put you in that kind of danger?!" May suddenly stood up and paced around, her face red with anger and frustration. 

"Stop! Aunt May..." Peter took a deep breath and stood up to block her path and stop her pacing. "Mr. Stark isn't enabling me! I think… well, I know that he's trying to keep me safe." Peter took another breath and continued. "I've put a lot of thought into this, Aunt May. In the beginning, I was confused about Mr. Stark calling me in, too. I think he was in a desperate place. He wanted to try and salvage the Avengers, and maybe he thought a fresh face could help things turn in his favor. Win the fight, make them listen to reason, and save the team… or something like that. I don't think things worked out the way he wanted. He seemed so sad when it was all over, and I think he realized that maybe he brought me in too soon." Peter decided to back up a little. "Look, May, when he came here, he had a clip from YouTube. It was a video of me stopping a car with my bare hands."

May gasped but allowed Peter to continue.

"I think they… or he… I don't know… they keep their eyes open for enhanced persons or something. Maybe to join the team or assess a threat…I don't know. But, he discovered my identity. He wanted to know why I use my abilities to help others. He just wanted to know more about me. He's continued to learn about me and get to know me. He's helping me grow, May. I look up to him. He built this suit to keep an eye on me. He makes sure I'm safe, and he gives me feedback. I thought he would call me in again to help, but he hasn't. I think he realized that I needed time to be a kid." Peter stopped to think a moment before starting again, the words pouring out of his mouth like water tumbling over a waterfall. "I'm the one who puts Spider-Man first… it’s not Mr. Stark who makes me Spider-Man. I can't stop being who I am, and Peter Parker is Spider-Man. He’s part of me… my DNA is forever changed, and I intend to use my powers for good. I see trouble, and I can't walk away, May, I CAN'T!" Peter breathed deeply, "Not again…"

"Again?" May prompted.

Peter let more tears slip from his eyes and lowered his gaze, wringing his hands nervously in his lap. "I could've stopped him, May. Uncle Ben's killer… I SHOULD have stopped him! I had the ability, and I just let him get away. I didn't know… I couldn't know…" Peter hiccupped, "but he did it. He shot Uncle Ben! I'm so so sorry!" And this time Peter cried in earnest, letting himself sink back down heavily on the couch. 

"Oh Peter!" May soothed, settling next to him. She pulled his head to her shoulder and hugged him close. She held him there for a while. It gave her a chance to process things and Peter a chance to calm down. "Peter…" May whispered, "Peter, this is a lot to take in. But if I understand correctly, you're saying that you started patrolling the neighborhood as Spider-Man because you wanted to stop others from being hurt? You didn't want anyone else to be hurt like your Uncle Ben?"

Peter looked at his aunt and nodded slowly.

She continued, "And Stark found out your identity? He made you an Avenger, but you're still patrolling the neighborhood? Like… training or something?"

Peter took another deep breath before he spoke again. This time he told her all about what happened with the weapons and the Vulture. He explained how Iron Man saved his life. He told her about losing the suit, but still fighting the Vulture. He told her about going to the compound and the invitation to join. Finally, he told her about turning Mr. Stark down on his invitation.

"Aunt May, I think Mr. Stark is trying to help me make good decisions as Spider-Man. He finally gave me the opportunity to be an official Avenger, but I realized that he was right to have me take things a little slower. I realized that I still want some time to be a high school student, but I also  _ need _ to continue as Spider-Man. As long as people need me, Aunt May, I want to be there for them." Peter smiled, "I'm the Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man."

May gave a short laugh. "Ok. Ok, Spider-Man. I think I understand. I'm proud of you, Peter, truly."

Peter gave his aunt a surprised look, his eyebrows nearly raised to his hairline.

"Let me finish," She said. "I'm proud of you for turning down the Avengers for the time being. I'm proud of you for wanting to help people." She cleared her throat. "However, I am not proud of you for thinking that you had to keep this from me. We are in this together… you and me. You need to be honest with me no matter what. Yes, I will worry about you, but I love you, Peter. Nothing will change that." She pointed to his suit, "Not even red and blue spandex." She smiled, and Peter laughed at that.

"It makes the most sense. Easy to move in and everything."

Peter was relieved. Could it really be that easy? He doubted it…

"Oh…and you're grounded." May said.

Peter's eyebrows shot up once again and his mouth dropped open.

Before he could protest, May continued, "You deserve at least that much! You lied to me for a year, so as punishment, you will give me that suit for TWO WEEKS! Over those weeks, we are going to keep talking about this. You are going to continue to fill in some blanks for me. I want to understand your abilities. I want to know everything about Spider-Man."

Peter wanted to protest, "But May…"

"No!" She cut him off. "I heard what you said, Peter. I know this is who you are, and I will make you a deal. If you think there is any real danger in those 2 weeks, I will let you take it back temporarily. But you  _ HAVE _ to talk to me! We have to figure out some ground rules here. It's like you said… you need time to be a high school kid. I'm the one in charge of that high school kid, Spider-Man or not. We need time to decide what this is going to look like for our family. We need to figure out how to make this work."

Peter thought for a moment. "Thank you, Aunt May. I know you're looking out for me… for us. I really am sorry. I never meant to hurt you. I thought I was protecting you. But…" Peter took yet another steadying breath, "you must understand that I may not be able to tell you everything! Some things may be dangerous. I can't lose you! I can't risk your safety!"

May put her hands onto Peter's shoulders, trying to steady him. Belatedly, she realized just how strong and firm those shoulders were.  _ "How did I miss this? _ " She thought to herself.

"Peter, we will have 2 weeks to talk this all out. For now, I want you to take the red and blue spandex off and hand it over. Put on some regular clothes, please! I need time to process this without looking at you in… _ that! _ " Again, she pointed at the suit with her hands.

Peter gave a small chuckle and nodded his head in agreement. It was going to be a long 2 weeks, but he supposed that he owed his aunt that much. He got up from the couch and started towards his room.

"Oh! And one more thing!" May called to him.

Peter turned to look at her. He saw a sly smile sneak its way onto her face before she said, "If you think I'm not giving that Tony Stark a piece of my mind, you're wrong! Iron Man or not, I will punch him right in the face!"

Peter swallowed hard. He didn't doubt his aunt for a second. He thought about texting Mr. Stark to warn him, but instead he nodded to his aunt before finishing the short journey to his room. He decided maybe Tony deserved a little punishment from his aunt as much he did.

It was typical of Peter... He worried about May and even Tony. It was just too bad he never spent enough time worrying about himself. In the future, that could prove to be his greatest mistake.


	2. Surprised the Heck Out of Us

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This is another shorter chapter. They'll get longer as the story progresses.

Upstate, Tony was sitting on his couch sipping whiskey and rubbing his forehead. He had just finished a phone call with Secretary Ross. He had been dodging the man long enough, and he couldn't get away with putting him on hold any more. The phone call had not gone well. Ross had seen the footage of the fight in Germany, and he was more than a little interested in the identity of the man who was helping Tony by webbing up the Capsicle and his pals. Ross had been after him for awhile now, and the Spider-Man's recent involvement with Tony’s plane only made Ross more persistent.

Tony recalled the conversation in detail:

_ "You really expect me to believe that you have no knowledge of his true identity? Based on intel from some friends of mine in the FBI, you showed up and bailed the guy out with that ferry incident." exclaimed Ross. _

_ "The mask covers his face and he shoots webbing. I'm not sure I want to know what that guy looks like under the mask. He could have those creepy spider eyes! I prefer to remain in the dark. Plus, Pepper hates spiders! Since we're engaged now, I feel like I should try to keep my distance." Tony lied. Pepper wasn't even freaked out by spiders. Happy was more arachnophobic than Pepper. _

_ "Cut the crap, Stark! I don't care what he looks like! I want a name. He needs to be held accountable just like the rest of you. That plane crash with Adrian Toomes could have hurt or killed innocent people. I want a name, so that he can be held accountable and sign the Accords." _

_ Tony clenched his jaw and sucked in a breath before answering, "Spider-Man makes his own decisions. He sees somebody doing something wrong, and he just swings into action. I really didn't care to take the time to have a heart-to-heart with the Webhead! I have better things to do. At the present, I have a wedding to plan. My fiancé has more influence than you do. She scares me more." _

_ Ross growled on the other end of the line, "You expect me to believe that a man like you wouldn't have the facts about Spider-Man?! I don't believe you Stark. You would use your extensive resources to get that information. You're too arrogant to let yourself stay in the dark." _

_ Tony heard enough. "Think what you'd like. I don't have time to argue with you about wall-crawlers. My fiancé is expecting me to pick a date for our wedding, so I'm going to have to call you back never. Bye!" _

_ "Stark! Don't even think about hanging up on…" _

It was too late. FRIDAY ended the call as soon as Tony bid the man farewell. His AI then let him know that Pepper would arrive in about 5 minutes.

As a matter of fact, Pepper was just arriving now, effectively pulling Tony from his thoughts.

She walked into the room ready to get to business, "Tony, I was just talking to Happy. He feels that it will be important for us to set a decoy date to throw off the…" She stopped talking when she noticed the whiskey in one hand and his head leaning on the other. "Tony? I know that look. Is it Ross again?" Pepper was proud of Tony for trying to be responsible as Iron Man by signing the Accords. He had changed so much since his time in Afghanistan. He wanted so badly to be a better man, but his journey was certainly not an easy one. He couldn't do it alone, and that was why their "break" didn't last long. He needed her, and she was committed to being there for him no matter what. If only Ross was more trustworthy.

"You're so smart." Tony replied. Standing up and walking towards her with an admiring look in his eyes. "You know me so well. Honestly, it's like we're already married. Is eloping still out of the question? I have connections. We could be official by this time tomorrow."

"Tony…" Pepper gave him a look that clearly said,  _ "You're avoiding my question." _

He sighed, "Yes. I talked to the puppet-master. He wants Spider-Man dangling from his strings, and he believes that I am keeping his true identity a secret. Which I am of course." He took a long swig and downed the rest of the whiskey. "I think I'm glad the kid made the choice that he did. He wants time to 'stay on the ground' and be a teenager. If he agreed to be an Avenger, he wouldn't have any other choice but to sign the Accords. Then the whole world would figure out that Peter Parker is Spider-Man. The kid's aunt doesn't even know yet." (Or so he thought).

Pepper smiled as she walked up to Tony and wrapped her arms around his neck. "Well, you do have a habit of jumping into things and figuring out details later. It's a good thing the kid has a little more maturity than you."

He gave her a look and rolled his eyes, but then he shrugged his shoulders before conceding, "Yeah… he's a really smart kid. I shouldn't have brought him into this now. The bad timing is my fault." He looked thoughtful before continuing, "He's amazing though, right? I mean, the kid was able to manage Toomes and the plane by himself. He didn't even have the suit I made him… my fault, I know!" He said this when he saw Pepper raise an eyebrow about Peter being without his more advanced suit.

"He would be an asset to the team, Pep. But, he's earned the right to make his own decisions from this point forward. I won't put him on Ross' radar any more than he already is."

Pepper was quiet for a moment and then pulled Tony in for a hug. Only then to pull away and look in his eyes. She spoke softly, "You care about him, Tony. If you want to protect him, you need to warn him that Ross is looking for him. You should call him. You. Not Happy." She insisted.

"You're probably right. I'll reach out to him tomorr…" He was cut off by FRIDAY.

"Boss," the AI interrupted. "I beg your pardon, sir, but there is a disturbance at the security gate. It appears that May Parker is here with Peter. She insists on speaking with you immediately."

Pepper lifted her eyebrows at Tony, "I think she knows."

Tony let go of Pepper and took a step towards the door. "Yeah… FRIDAY, notify security that I'm on my way and let them know that they should escort Peter and May to Conference Room 1. We're going to need our privacy." He looked at Pepper. "Any chance you'll come with me?"

She smiled and quirked an eyebrow. "Oh no! I think this is something that you will need to face on your own." She leaned forward and kissed him on his cheek. "One of these days, we'll actually get a chance to talk about wedding plans."

Tony smiled and gave her an apologetic look. "I don't deserve you," he said.

"Maybe not," she replied playfully, "but I choose to love you anyway."

He captured her lips with his own, "I love you more, Ms. Potts."

With one final look, he turned and made his way to the conference room. He only hoped that Aunt Hottie didn't kill him before he even got the chance to marry his amazing fiancé.


	3. Road Trip

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This chapter explains how Peter and May end up at the compound.

"May knows you're Spider-Man?!" Ned exclaimed.

"Dude, quiet down!" Peter shushed his friend. It was Friday, and Peter just had this short time at school to help him regain some sense of normalcy before returning home to face whatever inquiry May would send his way over the weekend.

"It wasn't so different from how you found out. She caught me in the suit while I was in my room." Peter sighed, "It was awful, dude. She was so hurt."

"Wait, wait, wait…the suit? Like THE suit? I thought Mr. Stark took that away," Ned questioned.

Peter explained how Happy took him upstate earlier in the week, and he even told his friend about being offered an official place with the Avengers. "It was all a test, though  _ (or so he thought). _ I guess I passed because I found the suit left for me in my room. I should have made sure that May wasn't home, but I was so happy to see it again. I just had to put it on…that's when May saw me."

Ned shook his head in disbelief. "Now we know why Superman changed in a phone booth. You'll have to be more careful about who sees you change, dude!"

"Ugh! That's creepy, Ned! Ideally, no one would see me." The two friends continued through their day, and Ned offered Peter encouragement whenever he could.

Before they parted ways at the end of the school day, Ned said, "I don't think you need to worry, Peter. Your aunt's cool, and she loves you. It's probably better that she knows. Now you guys can like, you know, be closer than ever."

Peter gave a reluctant nod, "I hope you're right, Ned. She's had some time to reconsider." He laughed and jokingly added, "If she kicks me out, I may just need to bunk with you."

Ned nodded, smiled, and spoke with a thoughtful voice, "Badass…it would be that much easier to be your guy in the chair!"

"Whatever, dude!" Peter responded while shaking his head slightly as his friend. "I'll see you Monday. Aunt May is restricting my phone privileges as well, so I won't be able to text you this weekend."

Ned offered a nod, "Who knew a teenage superhero would have to deal with cellphone restrictions and getting grounded. Good luck, Peter!"

"Thanks…later!" he yelled before making his way home.

* * *

The whole way home, Peter worried about what May might ask. One moment he felt relieved about telling his aunt the truth, but the next moment he felt dread. It could be dangerous for her to know too much. He sighed and thought,  _ "Peter, you have a lot to figure out in the next couple of weeks." _

The last thing Peter expected was for his aunt to be waiting for him outside.

She quirked an eyebrow at him as he walked up to their apartment building. "I'm surprised to see you using the sidewalk. I half expected to see you swinging down the street with your spidey-webs."

"AUNT MAY!" Peter exclaimed in a harsh whisper. He moved closer to her and said, "Please, you need to be careful, you never know who could hear you! I need you to be more careful. I told you, I can't let anything happen to you!"

May gave him a look before scanning the street. "Peter, we are alone. This is Queens. People keep to themselves and care little about what is said on the street anyway."

Peter shook his head. "There are two people about to come around the corner. One is wearing headphones, but the other is actually paying attention to where they’re going." Not long after he finished, two young men came around the corner. One was wearing headphones and bobbing his head to his music, but the other young man seemed to be keeping a close eye (and probably a close ear) on their surroundings.

May's mouth dropped open, "How did you…"

"…Heightened senses." Peter interrupted.

May sighed, "Right, I still have so much to learn about my own kid. Come on…" she walked forward and grabbed his arm on her way, leading him towards her car. "…We're going to take a road trip."

Something in Peter panicked. "What?! Wait…you're not kicking me out, are you? I told you I was sorry, May."  _ Maybe he would be bunking with Ned after all. _

She gave him an exasperated look, "You're not getting rid of me that easily, young man. Just…get in the car. We'll talk more on the way."

"On the way, where?" Peter insisted.

"Peter, just get in the car…Please!" May gave him a look that clearly indicated that she was still the one in charge.

Once in the car, Peter took a closer look at his aunt. She looked like she hadn't gotten any sleep, and he was pretty sure that she had called out of work.

They drove in silence for some time before Peter realized in which direction they were headed. "Oh no! May…why are we driving upstate?! Please tell me we aren't…"

"…Oh, we are!" May cut in. "We are both going to have a talk with that Tony Stark. He made himself a part of our lives, so we need to settle some things with him once and for all. Like… I am your legal guardian, and he has no right to endanger you without talking to me first!" Her voice grew louder with each word she spoke.

Peter put his head in his hands and growled in frustration.  _ "Mr. Stark will never let me hear the end of this." _

"Do you even know where you are going? They don't exactly post directions to the Avengers Compound on Google Maps, May."

"I know!" May defended before clearing her throat and admitting, "I already looked."

"Then what are we doing? Are you planning to just drive all around until something looks promising?" Peter squealed.

"Don't take that tone with me young man!" May looked over at him in the passenger seat. She had definitely mastered the "mom look" with him over the years. "I do have some sense, you know. You already told me you were there once. I expect you to make sure we are going the right way."

Peter gave her a look and asked, "What makes you think I'll remember?"

"Hah! Come on, Peter! What do you take me for, a fool? You're too smart, and you have an incredible sense of direction. Add in those heightened senses and I have no doubt that you can find your way back."

She gave him an expectant look before he answered, "Fine. Keep going. We have about another 25 miles before our exit."

May smiled triumphantly. "Perfect. Plenty of time for you to answer some questions along the way."

"Great." Peter replied without any real enthusiasm.

"You don't like spit venom or anything, do you?" May asked.

Peter put his head back on the seat and looked up towards the roof of the car. He closed his eyes and sighed while shaking his head, "Who would have thought that you and Ned would ask the same kind of questions."

May raised her eyebrows, and Peter realized she was still waiting for an answer.

"NO!" he said (maybe a little too loudly). He lowered his voice to a normal level before continuing, "And before you ask, I do NOT lay eggs, either!"

May laughed out loud at that, "Well, thank God! I won't have to worry about anything hatching in our apartment."

Peter looked at her in disbelief, but then saw the playful smile on her face. "You're kidding…"

"Of course! That was something I didn't even think about!" She laughed again before adding. "But that is good to know. A small comfort."

"Aw, come on…" Peter whined.

May laughed some more. The ride continued with more questions about Peter's abilities and the changes to his body. Peter also clarified on exactly what Ned knew since his aunt did not want his friend to know more than her. Before long, they took their exit and Peter was helping his aunt to navigate the back roads that would lead to the compound.

"You know…I should probably call Mr. Stark and let him know we're coming. They may not even let us in. Security is pretty tight." Peter explained.

"No!" May insisted. "They will let us in. I do not want to give that Stark a chance to run away. He’s gonna have to answer to me once and for all."

"I don't know. What if he isn't even there?"

"I packed up some things and put them in the trunk before you got home. We'll wait for him there all weekend if we have to. Surely they will let Spider-Man into the Avengers Compound." May said with complete determination.

"What? Bags? May…Mr. Stark and his head of security, Happy, are some of the only people who know who I am. This may not work out in the way you want. We cannot go up to the gate and announce that Spider-Man and his aunt want an audience with Iron Man!"

May huffed, "Well, I guess I'm glad that you are being careful with your secret, but I  _ will _ get us into that building!"

Peter was quiet for the rest of the trip except to finish giving his aunt directions. He really didn't doubt her ability to get them inside.

_ "Mr. Stark is really never ever going to let me hear the end of this!"  _ Peter slumped down in his seat, resigned to the fate the lay ahead of him.


	4. Some Explaining to Do

Peter was sure that security was going to send them away. That was really his only hope. However, it wasn't long before one of the guards was on the phone. The man's demeanor changed in a way that let him know that they were about to be granted access. Sure enough, he came back to the car with directions for them to drive to the front entrance and meet Happy inside, where he would be taking them to a conference room.

May had the most triumphant look on her face. Peter continued to watch her face closely as they approached the massive structure of the compound. Her eyes were wide and filled with wonder. "Will you look at that?" She said as a plane took off. It reminded Peter of his first trip to the building, especially when she added, "You don't see that every day."

Another man met them out front, offering (more like insisting) to park the car. Peter and May got out and started towards the building. Peter briefly thought about the bags in the trunk, but he decided not to bring that up. Instead, he walked with May to the front where Happy was waiting for them. He didn't look particularly thrilled, and Peter refused to look the man in the eyes for fear of seeing disappointment. Surely Peter had broken some unspoken rule by guiding his aunt to the compound.

"So, you're Happy?" May asked. "That Tony better be ready to meet with us. I have things to say to him, and he cannot hide from me forever!"

"I was asked to take you to the conference room, Mrs. Parker," Happy explained. "After that, Tony is on his own." 

May gave him a skeptical look, but she followed him to the room. Peter followed with his head down, and he fought the urge to climb the wall and hide in the ceiling vents.

It didn't look like a typical conference room. There were all sorts of Stark tech placed around the room, and the furniture looked more like what one would expect to see in a nice living room. Peter noticed his aunt's surprise upon walking into the space, but she quickly hid it away. She wouldn't want to give Mr. Stark any sign of being impressed.

"Tony is finishing a meeting with Ms. Potts, but he will be joining you momentarily." Happy informed them. "If you need anything in the meantime, FRIDAY will help you."

"How will it help that today is Friday?" May asked, genuinely confused.

Before anyone could explain, the AI answered for herself in her smooth Scottish accent, "Allow me to explain, Mrs. Parker. I am Mr. Stark's personal AI, called FRIDAY. I am available in every room. I am here to lend aid to all of Mr. Stark's more welcome guests."

May's mouth was agape, but she recovered quickly, "Of course. Thank you, FRIDAY." She sat on a chair with a table in front and crossed her arms stubbornly. "All I want right now is to give that Tony Stark a piece of my mind!"

For the first time, Peter looked over towards Happy. To his surprise, the man looked somewhat amused by May's behavior. He gave a nod to May before shifting his attention to Peter. When their eyes met, Happy said, "Good luck, kid." Then he was quickly out the door.

"FRIDAY!" May said more loudly than she needed to. It was like listening to someone who spoke too loudly on their phone. "How long are we going to be waiting for Iron Man to show his face?"

"Boss is currently getting off the elevator and will be joining you shortly. However, he will not be wearing his Iron Man armor. Will you be needing him to suit up, Mrs. Parker?" FRIDAY inquired.

"That might be safer." Peter muttered under his breath.

"NO!" May insisted, rising to a standing position and walking over towards the door. "Thank you, FRIDAY."

It was all too much... this is crazy. Peter sat down and put his head in his hands. He wasn't sure he would survive this meeting.

In the next moment, things happened rather quickly. If it wasn't for Peter's spider-sense, he may not have been able to register everything that happened. First, the door to the room opened. Mr. Stark entered the room, seeing Peter first. May had been waiting for him by the door. Before Mr. Stark could fully turn to acknowledge her, May delivered a solid right hook to his face. Peter was up on his feet in flash.

"May, stop!" he yelled. He quickly placed himself between the two before she could take another swing.

To Tony's credit, he took it in stride. He had actually somewhat expected the hit. He just didn't expect May to deliver it with such force.

"Small contusion detected. Will you be needing assistance, Boss?" FRIDAY asked.

"That will be unnecessary, FRIDAY. Thank you." Tony replied to his AI.

May looked up at the sound of the AI's voice before turning her attention back to Tony. Peter came to stand beside his aunt and wrapped her into somewhat of a hug, both to calm her and keep her in place.

Tony rubbed at his cheek before looking at his visitors as if nothing happened.

"Well, this is a pleasant surprise. Gosh, May…it's nice to see you again. Impressive right hook by the way. Very effective. I'm guessing Pete's filled you in on a few things since you are here." He walked towards the table and rubbed at his cheek some more. "With skills like that perhaps Aunt May should be an Avenger, huh Pete?" Tony gave Peter a look that indicated he was looking for him to say something in explanation.

May beat Peter to it. Before he could open his mouth, May was throwing her words at Tony. "About that! What is the matter with you?! How could you endanger him like this? How could you keep this from me? I am his guardian. I am responsible for him. You had NO RIGHT to involve him without talking to me and telling me what was going on! You arrogant, self-interested SON-OF-A-BI…."

"Aunt May, please!" Peter cut her off. He spun her around to look at him. "Enough! Please. I tried to explain to you. Just let me explain…to…Mr. Stark. Um, Mr. Stark…"

Peter began to stutter nervously. He looked to Tony, who kept an appearance of being completely unfazed. "Please, Pete…do explain something. I'd hate to, you know, say something that will cause your aunt to take another shot at my face."

May was breathing deeply and glaring at Tony. If looks could kill, his days as Iron Man would be over.

Peter took a breath and gave Tony the briefest and quickest explanation he could. His words tumbled out quickly. If Tony weren't so used to spending time with the kid already, he may not have been able to catch the words as they spilled out.

"Mr. Stark. I am so sorry. I promised her answers. She insisted on coming here. She practically kidnapped me…ok that's an exaggeration. I'm sorry, May. Ton…ugh…Mr. Stark, Aunt May discovered me in my suit, she knows the truth. I've been explaining things to her. She deserves the truth now, Mr. Stark. I tried to explain your help, but she…you know…she blames…errr she thinks, I mean…"

"I WANT TO KNOW WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON! I WANT TO UNDERSTAND WHY YOU GOT YOURSELF INVOLVED IN MY KID'S LIFE. AND I WANT TO KNOW WHY THE F*** MY KID FEELS THE NEED TO PUT HIMSELF IN HARM'S WAY USING A STARK-BUILT SUIT!" May screamed. She was so upset that she was shaking.

Tony just blinked at her, and he now looked mildly fazed.

"I think we should all sit down. May, Peter…please sit. Would you like something to drink? I think I need something to drink." With that, Tony walked over to a cabinet and took out some scotch.

"You know what, Stark." May said, "I would like a drink. Fill her up," She said pointing to the glass in Tony's hand.

Tony nodded, filling a glass for each of them. "Water, kid?" Tony asked.

"No…uh…thanks." Peter mumbled out. He and Aunt May were sitting now.

Tony walked over, handed May her glass while she glared daggers with her eyes. However, the rest of her body language showed that she was just plain exhausted. Peter and May were quiet, and Tony realized that he would need to break the silence.

"Let me make sure that I understand." He looked at May. "Pete told you that he is Spider-Man. He told you why I really came to your house the first time, and he told you about becoming connected to the Avengers?"

May only nodded. She really was exhausted. She would remain calm so long as she was getting an explanation.

Peter cut in, "I explained that you needed help in Germany. Of course, she saw the footage that was reported on the news. She knows all about what Spider-Man has done, and she is…" Peter cleared his throat, "less than thrilled that I was the one doing those things.

"You could have died!" May's voice was small and came out as a choked whisper. She took a swig of the scotch before continuing with a little more strength in her voice. Her next words were directed towards Tony. "You knew he was putting himself in harm's way, and you didn't even have the  _ decency  _ to tell me! He's a kid! Don't you of all people know the science behind the risks that boys his age are willing to take? He needed someone to reason with him! Help him make good choices…stay safe! And  _ YOU _ encouraged him to take those risks. He is all I have left. I want to know what makes you think that you have  _ ANY RIGHT _ to make that decision?"

"Aunt May..," Peter started, only to be cut off by Tony.

"No, kid. This one's on me." He took a swig of his own scotch before pulling his chair closer to May and continuing. "I'm not…" He sighed. He hated when he had to be so serious. "I don't always make the best decisions." He cleared his throat. "I've been known to only think of myself at times…not fully thinking through how things will impact others." He was thoughtful for a moment. "Which is why I ultimately decided to sign the Accords. I need to be accountable for the decisions I make…because I somehow manage to make the wrong choices even when I have the best intentions. However… right now, I'm accountable to you, May"

Tony suddenly stood up and paced a little. He looked like he was battling his own thoughts.

Peter tried again, "Mr. Stark, I can…"

"Adults are still talking, kid." Tony stopped him, and Peter snapped his mouth shut. "I owe you an apology, May. I know that. The thing is…that kid right there" Tony nodded his head towards Peter, "He impressed me. God, he was so earnest that first day I met him. I could tell his heart was in the right place. He hadn't told a soul what had happened to him. He didn't tell ONE PERSON about what he was able to do." Tony smiled, "You may recall that I announced my superhero status to the world."

May raised her eyebrows and laughed without any real humor, "Who could forget? I am Iron Man!" She mimicked.

"Yeah…" Tony agreed with a humorless laugh. "So, you can imagine my surprise when I find a kid with more power than me, and he keeps it to himself so that he can help people."

Peter listened closely, not sure if he was really hearing this.  _ "Is Mr. Stark saying that I impressed him?" _

May was quiet and looked thoughtful, she ignored that Iron Man found her kid to be more powerful. "Why leave me out?" She finally asked. "Why not clue me in?"

"Pete asked me not to tell you. He insisted on protecting you." Tony winced a little. "I didn't protect my mom. I failed. Who was I to tell this kid how he should protect you? I thought maybe he was right about waiting to tell you. I told the world about my identity, and the people closest to me have been at risk ever since." He looked May right in the eye. It was so intense…so sincere…that she had to look away.

She glanced at Peter. She saw that he was looking at Tony. She couldn't quite place the emotion on Peter's face as he looked at Stark. Was it respect? May shook her head. "Damn it!" She exclaimed.

"I have to learn to live with this, don't I? I have to learn to be ok with all of it? Peter as Spider-Man? Working with Avengers?" She trailed off.

Tony was quiet, and Peter decided it was finally his turn to speak for himself.

"Listen…both of you! I didn't ask to be bitten by the spider! I couldn't control what happened. So much of what has happened in my life was outside of my control!" He looked at the two adults. They looked thoughtful, and he realized that they were giving him the space to continue.

"I couldn't control what happened to my parents! I couldn't control gaining these abilities! So now, it's about finding what I can control and learning how my abilties help me take control of my life. I lost Uncle Ben, and I realized that I could fight back… should fight back. I can help save people from experiencing losses like the ones I have experienced! No one gets to make that decision except for me! If I didn't really want to help Mr. Stark when he came to me, I wouldn't have helped him. I thought Cap was helping a criminal and making bad choices, so I decided to help! Me! I made that choice."

He looked at them again to be sure they were still listening. May began to cut in and pointed at Tony, "But the suit…"

"That suit is amazing, Aunt May. It has serious upgrades. Upgrades that keep me safe. Remember what I told you about him saving me?" He continued without giving her time to answer, "He put everything in that suit. When I was in trouble, he was alerted and helped me. That suit helps me be a better Spider-Man, but it doesn't make me Spider-Man. I am Spider-Man with or without that suit."

May looked at Tony. Was it just her or did the man look proud?

"I think I helped him learn that," Tony said, sounding almost surprised by his own revelation.

"Toomes dropped a building on me, and I lifted it off by myself without the fancy suit," Peter said. All at once, he realized what he just admitted, and his eyes went wide.

"What?!" Both adults exclaimed at once.

"Never mind. I'm fine. Clearly." Peter spoke quickly. "What I'm trying to say is that I am really strong. I can do this. I can be Spider-Man. You guys don't need to worry so much."

"Of course, I do," May said.

"I'm gonna worry, kid." Tony said at the same time.

May and Tony looked at one another. An understanding passing between the two of them.

May finished her glass of scotch and set it down. "Listen, both of you." She looked at Tony, "You are Iron Man." She turned to Peter, "You are Spider-Man." Then she continued, "I know both of you…I know where you live and sleep. If you  _ EVER _ lie to me again, no super-powers will be able to protect you from my wrath. Is that clear, Iron Man?"

Tony nodded (and Peter noticed he gulped).

"Is that clear, Spider-Man?" She was looking at Peter now.

"Aunt May, I promise to tell you things that you  _ need _ to know. I won't intentionally lie to you, but you need to understand me when I say that I will not tell you anything that will put you in harm's way. Deal?" He asked.

"For now." May agreed.

"So, this is settled?" Peter asked. "I'm not sure I can take any more of this. There is no sense wasting time on things that are already done and can't be changed."

"I agree with the kid!" Tony jumped in. "We need to focus on what happens next."

He took a breath and walked back over to the scotch to refill his glass. "I'm actually glad that you're here…both of you. Since the spider is out of the bag, we all have some things to discuss."

He took a drink and looked at May and Peter. "I'm afraid we have something very important to talk about."

"Oh, God." May said. "I think I'll take a refill before you continue."

Peter sighed and slumped down in his chair. There was no escaping this. His aunt knew the truth, and Tony was clearly ready to bring her in on whatever was happening next.  _ "Stupid spider,"  _ Peter thought.


	5. About Ross

Now that Tony and May had refilled their glasses, Tony figured it was time to talk about Ross.

Peter cut in before Tony could begin, "Um, Mr. Stark…are you sure this is something Aunt May needs to hear?" He didn't miss the glare she sent his way at that question. "It's just…I don't want her to get involved in anything that will endanger her. I understand that I need to be truthful, but…I can't have her knowing things that are dangerous." He looked back and forth between the adults; his eyes were pleading with them to understand.

"Peter Benjamin Parker," May scolded. "Like it or not, I know you're Spider-Man. I appreciate what you are trying to do, but it is not your job to take care of me. I was the one who promised to look after you!" She blinked back tears, "I want you to worry a little less about me, and a lot more about yourself. You need to let me help you figure this out. You don't need to take on this responsibility alone…not as long as I'm around."

Peter sighed before looking towards Tony. The Iron Man looked uncomfortable, and he was clearly over the mushy emotions. He wanted to get down to business, and he began talking as soon as Peter gave him the slightest nod.

"Right…so we're good now? Love fest has concluded?" May and Peter rolled their eyes, and Tony continued, "Ross knows about Spider-Man's existence, and he is dying to know the man behind the mask." He got straight to the point, and he didn't fail to notice how the other two people in the room went completely still as he shared the news.

"It's my fault," Tony continued. "Ross saw Spider-Man's involvement in Germany, and he knows that Spider-Man helped stop Toomes from robbing my plane. He thinks that Spider-Man is becoming too much of a danger to the public. He wants to know his identity so that he can sign the Accords."

"Ross? As in Secretary Ross? In charge of the Sokovia Accords? Is that who we're talking about here?" May sucked in a breath and looked straight at Tony, "I should you hit you again. You're right, this is all your faul…"

"…No!" Peter interrupted. "I don't think it's  _ all  _ his fault, May. I was becoming more active as Spider-Man even without Mr. Stark's suit. Heck, I brought down the plane without the suit, remember?"

Both adults looked thoughtful. How could they forget? He could have been killed!

"Ross was bound to want more information on Spider-Man sooner or later. It may be sooner than I would like, but at least I don't need to figure this out alone. Right, Mr. Stark?" Peter asked.

Tony looked dubiously at Peter. Was this kid serious? How was it that Tony had gained so much trust from the kid? One thing was for sure, he was not going to let Ross get anywhere near him. Peter was just too innocent. He didn't need the crap that Ross would bring down on him.

"Yeah, kid," Tony confirmed. "You're not alone. We…" He pointed between the three of them, "…will figure this out."

"What if Peter signs?" May asked. "Would that be so bad?" May was still new to all of this, and she wanted to understand the problem.

"Ross is one annoying son-of-a-bitch," Tony explained. "If Peter signs the accords, he would need to sign as Peter Parker. The whole world would learn that Peter Parker is Spider-Man. That means that Pete's life would change forever. He would probably need to leave school and move here in order to be safe, and…"

Peter cut in, "It could put you at risk, Aunt May. Your life would be changed, too. I'm not ready for people to start chasing after us all the time. I turned down Mr. Stark's offer to be an Avenger because I realized that I still need some time to be a high school student, and that's what you need from me, Aunt May."

"Ok…so... if Ross is looking for Spider-Man, then Peter just stays off the streets and focuses on school from here on out!" May offered hopefully. Even as she said it, she knew that neither of the men in the room would agree, especially Peter.

Peter's mouth dropped open, and he was ready to protest. However, it was Iron Man who answered for him. "From experience, May, I learned that you can't take the Spider out of the kid. He can't help himself, can you, Pete?"

Peter shook his head and responded, "This is who I am. I  _ cannot  _ ignore a problem when I can do something to fix it. I will never leave someone to be taken advantage of! I can't!"

"Right. Just as I expected! So, we need to find a way to balance the life of Peter Parker with the adventures of Spider-Man. Oh! And…we have to try to keep those two things as separate as possible in order to keep Ross from connecting the dots." Tony explained.

May lifted her glass and emptied the contents before standing up. She placed her hands on her hips and began pacing back and forth. "It's probably too late, right? I brought Peter here to the compound, and he's been here before. Surely Ross already keeps a close eye on this place? He'll want to know who this kid is that is welcome at the Avengers facility!" May's eyes were wide and frantic. She looked like she could pass out.

"Woah, woah…May, please sit back down." It was Peter's turn to stand up, and he ushered his aunt back into her seat before placing a reassuring hand on her shoulder.

Peter looked at Tony, "Is that true, Mr. Stark? Do you think Ross knows that I'm here?"

Tony didn't miss the concerned look on Peter's face, but the kid did a good job of hiding away any panic. Peter was clearly trying to be strong for his aunt.

Tony offered them a cheeky grin and held out his hands, "Who are you talking to?"

They both looked back at him with confused expressions.

Tony huffed before continuing, "I'm Tony Stark, and I designed this place. Do you really think I would give Ross access to a live feed of this building?"

Peter gave Tony an impressed and knowing smile, but May still looked confused. Tony continued, "Ross thinks that he knows what is happening here; however, that man only sees what FRIDAY and I will allow him to see. There is a delay on his feed…one that he knows nothing about. If someone comes to the compound that Ross doesn't need to know about, their arrival is erased before he can ever see it. Those security guards work for me, not Ross. Therefore, he only knows that Pepper arrived this evening to discuss our wedding. He has no idea you're even here!"

Tony was clearly proud of himself, and May visibly relaxed. "Thank God," she said.

"You can call me Tony," he answered back.

May looked like she was about to throw another comment at that, but Peter spoke first. "That's amazing, Mr. Stark. I'd hate for him to know anything about Aunt May."

"Peter!" his aunt scolded. "Will you stop worrying about me! I’m not the one he's curious about." She took a breath, "Ok…what happens if Peter doesn't sign and Ross finds out? Just how worried do I need to be about this guy?"

Peter gave Tony a look that said,  _ "Please don't make her worry!" _ However, Tony was prepared to let them both know just who they were dealing with.

"There's a prison that was designed to contain enhanced individuals. It’s a floating fortress called ‘The Raft.’ Ross took some of the wayward Avenger's there after the incident in Germany. I was there before Cap helped them escape. It's an awful place, and I'm afraid, with Peter's abilities, that Ross could take him there," Tony confessed.

Peter went pale. He didn't want to be locked up or trapped in some prison.

"But he's just a kid!" May exclaimed. "Surely he wouldn't condemn a child to that fate!" She looked at Tony hopefully.

"Ross doesn't have an ounce of compassion, especially when it comes to enhanced individuals. If he doesn't get his way on this, I feel that he could take drastic measures." Tony took a deep breath.

"So why in the hell did you sign the Accords? Why work with this man?" May questioned.

"Initially, I felt I needed to be held responsible for what happened in Sokovia. That was on me." Tony's face was full of regret. "But after I signed the Accords, I realized just how much of a jackass Ross truly is. It's like he thinks those of us who signed are at his beck and call…his puppets. Rhodes and I are working with some of our contacts. We want to see the Accords amended. Things need to change, and Ross needs to go. Hell, we may even get the others to sign if there are changes made. I just think it will take some time."

The room was quiet as they all processed the information.

Peter stepped away from his aunt and took a step towards Tony. He turned so that he was standing in a position that both of the adults could see his face. This was his life, damn it, and he was going to have a say about it.

"Here's what I think needs to happen. I've thought about this a lot…it is my life, after all. As I said before, I would like to stay on the ground and finish high school. However, I need to be free to be Spider-Man as well. I propose that May and I continue our lives in Queens. I go to school as usual during the day, and I am given the opportunity to improve my skills as Spider-Man in the evening."

The adults looked skeptical, but Peter continued before they could interrupt.

"Look…what if I agree to stick to the small stuff? You know…things that wouldn't make it to Ross' radar? If I see anything big, I contact Mr. Stark." Peter explained.

"I need to know when you're out swinging around!" May said with determination. "And there would be a curfew! Plus, you are still grounded at the moment, so you will need to wait to put that plan in motion."

Tony took a step forward and spoke, "It sounds possible, kid, but you would need to be very careful. Ross is looking for you, studying Spider-Man's patterns. You may need to expand your radius a little and keep your distance from your house when you're suited up. This could work for a while, but I'm not sure how long it will take for him to start connecting those dots."

"Right…so, it just has to work long enough for the Accords to be amended." Peter rubbed his head and added, "You know, I'm willing to sign so long as my identity is a secret." Again, he looked at May. "They need to understand that the people signing the Accords aren't the only ones impacted by that decision."

Tony was studying Peter again. " _ Damn this kid! Why does he have to be so likable? How am I supposed to fix this and keep him safe?" _

"Ok, Spider-Man." Tony agreed. "It seems there are still some details that need to be ironed out, but you don't need me for that." He looked towards May, "There's still things that you need to discuss with your aunt, and you can both tell me what you decide. I'll respect it and help out as much as I can. Sound fair?"

"Yes. I can be agreeable to that," May confirmed before trying to hide a yawn.

Peter gave Tony a nod before asking, "FRIDAY, what time is it?"

The AI responded quickly, "It is 11:52 P.M., Peter. Is there anything I can do for you?"

"I got this, FRIDAY," Tony cut in. "Oh…on my way down here, the guy who parked your car did a routine sweep. He informed me that you both had some bags in the trunk, so I had them taken to some rooms upstairs."

May looked mildly embarrassed and perhaps a little upset that someone went through her car. "Oh…Um…well…uhhh…"

Peter spoke up and smirked at Tony, "She was prepared to wait here all weekend in case you weren't here when we arrived."

Tony snorted a laugh and looked at May, "You wanted to punch me that badly, huh?" He absently put a hand to his face as he spoke.

May looked somewhat triumphant at the small mark that she left and rubbed her own hand slightly. "You deserved that." She said simply.

"I suppose I did, Muhammad Ali," he joked but Peter could tell that Tony really did feel that he deserved it.

"Anyway…the point is that you are welcome to stay. You're welcome the whole weekend if you'd like. Pete already has a room, and I had your bags placed in one of the other rooms just across the hall, May. You two will pretty much have that area of the building to yourself. Vision went off to have some happy times with Miss Jazz Hands." He shrugged his shoulders, "He only thinks that I don't know about his little crush on the Scarlet Witch, but it's totally obvious. Who knew an Android could be just as weak as any other man when it comes to women?"

May looked a little confused, but mostly she looked exhausted.

"Thank you, Mr. Stark." Peter said, deciding to ignore the information about Vision. "But, we don't want to be a bother. I'm sure we'll head out tomorrow."

"Let's decide that in the morning, shall we?" Tony asked. "We may want the weekend to sort things out. Plus, I was hoping to work with you in the lab a little. I have some ideas for those web shooters of yours."

The three made their way to the door. May shook her head slightly, "I guess this is the new normal, huh?"

Peter put his arm around his aunt. "Everything will be ok, May."

She stifled another yawn.

"I'm going to join Pepper upstairs. Join me on the elevator, and I'll direct you to the right floor. FRIDAY will help you from there," Tony explained.

As they all entered the elevator, Peter noticed the exhaustion of his aunt yet again. He felt terrible for putting this burden on her. However, she did look a bit more relaxed than she had looked before. He only hoped that she would get some much-needed sleep that night.

The elevator moved up and stopped on the third floor. "Pepper and I are up on four," Tony explained. "FRIDAY can help you or notify me if you need anything."

It was late, and while May still had questions, her tired body was winning out. She would learn more about the compound later.

She and Peter waved their farewell to Tony as they stepped off the elevator. "Oh!" Tony added. "FRIDAY is programmed to give you full access, Pete. No one else can enter this part of the building without permission. Keep your aunt with you for now because I haven't programmed her in…yet. You'll be ok for tonight, but I’d stick to this floor."

With that the doors closed, and Tony was gone. The lights in the space slowly dimmed up to a soft light that wasn't too harsh for the late hour. The floor was massive. They were standing in an open common area with a large kitchen off to the right.

"Your rooms are straight through the lounge area. You will find a hallway ahead. Peter's room is the second door on the left. Mrs. Parker will enter the third door on the right." FRIDAY's voice entered the space, making May jump slightly.

Peter smiled at her before leading her towards the hallway. They peaked into his room first.

May gasped at the sight. It was as big as their apartment in Queens, but the space was all meant for Peter. The room included a sitting area with a small entertainment system. It had the newest Xbox and games for Peter.

"Wow!" Peter gasped. "This is all mine?"

FRIDAY responded, "Yes, Peter. Boss designed this space specifically for you. He also wants you to know that there is a wide selection of classic sci-fi films downloaded for your viewing pleasure."

"Seriously?" May asked. "This is…too much." She also saw an area with a desk/office type space in a little alcove. Beyond that was a door. They walked forward and opened the door, and they found that Peter's sleeping space was sectioned off from the sitting area. He had his own bathroom and walk-in closet. They walked into the massive bathroom and realized that there were two doors. One that gave him access to the bathroom from his sleeping area and another giving him access from the sitting area. They walked back to his bedroom.

"This bed is huge!" Peter exclaimed. It looked like a Queen size, and May didn't fail to notice the Star Wars posters and Lego sets that mimicked his room at home.

_ "Wow!" _ May thought.  _ "Stark didn't miss a single detail. This space is perfect for Peter _ ."

Peter looked like a kid on Christmas morning. He found his bag at the foot of the bed and reached for it.

He stopped himself and said, "Let's get you settled, Aunt May."

She nodded her head and followed Peter as he walked back towards the hallway. She was at a loss for words; Both because she was impressed by the extravagant room and because she was truly worn out.

They entered May's room to find a space that mirrored Peter's own. This space, however, had not yet been personalized for anyone in particular. It was more than enough for May. She turned towards Peter.

"I think I got it from here," She looked at him for a moment before pulling him into a hug. "I'm ready to crash, sweetheart. I don't want you to worry about anything else tonight. We both have a lot to think about and we need our rest. I'll be fine here, and I know where to find you if I need anything." He was quiet and looked thoughtful, so May asked, "Will you be alright?"

Peter finally looked up to meet her eyes. "I don't know what to think, Aunt May." He hugged her again and kissed her cheek lovingly. "But I want you to know that I'm glad you're here. This is crazy, and I never would have imagined…" He lifted his hands and motioned to their surroundings, "…all of this. I was scared to tell you, but I think I'm thankful that you know the truth now. I feel more relieved than I thought I would. I'm still worried about you, but I also have hope…you know…I think..." He took another breath, "…I think we're going to be ok."

May gave him a reassuring smile and took his hands in her own. She gave his hands a squeeze and said, "Whatever happens next, it will be ok because we'll face it together. Just like we always do."

Peter squeezed her hands back. "You're right, May. Thank you…for everything…I'm sorry I didn't tell you sooner. I love you, you know? Can you ever forgive me, Aunt May?"

She looked deeper into her nephew's eyes. "Oh honey, I already forgave you. I love you, kiddo!" She sighed and gave him another quick hug before pulling away and saying, "Alright enough of that for tonight! We need sleep, and I think that scotch has me feeling all the more tired. We'll talk more tomorrow, ok?"

"Ok," Peter replied. "Goodnight, May." He turned to exit the room.

"Goodnight, Peter." She called after him.

As Peter closed her door behind him, he took a moment to lean back and rest his head on her door a moment. He used his enhanced hearing to listen and be sure that she was alright. He could hear her moving towards the bedroom and felt confident that she was ready to simply rest for the night.

Peter was beginning to realize just how tired he himself was feeling as he walked into his room. He went directly to his bag to see if she remembered to pack what he would need to get ready for bed. As he opened his bag, he was surprised to see the familiar red and blue of his suit beneath the other contents.  _ "She really did think of everything," _ Peter thought to himself with a small smile.

He took what he needed into the bathroom, only to discover that the drawers and cupboards were already fully stocked. He shrugged his shoulders and opted to use what his aunt packed for him.

A few minutes later, Peter was climbing into the ginormous bed. It wasn't long after Peter's head hit the pillow that he was falling asleep. His last cognizant thought before sleep took him over was of a floating prison in the middle of the ocean. He suppressed a shudder as he drifted into a dreamless sleep.


	6. Saturday Morning

Peter awoke the next morning with a start. His enhanced senses screamed that something was different. Peter sat up in the bed and looked around wildly. After taking in his surroundings, he remembered the reason for which his senses were telling him that something wasn't right. This wasn't his bedroom. He was at the compound. Aunt May was there. She knew the truth. It was going to be a long ass day!

These thoughts fired rapidly through his mind, and he slammed his head back on the pillow before scrubbing hands over his face to wipe the remaining sleep from his eyes.

"Ugh…What time is it?" Peter wondered aloud.

"Good Morning, Peter. It is currently 7:18 A.M.," FRIDAY responded, making Peter jump slightly in surprise. "Is there anything I can do for you?"

"No…Nope, thanks FRIDAY. I'm…uh…yep…I'm good," Peter responded groggily.

There was no going back to sleep now. He stared at the ceiling recalling the events of the day before. School had been fairly normal considering what May had learned. Ned was supportive, and Peter was looking forward to filling in his friend when he saw him on Monday. He doubted May would give him back phone privileges yet. She was still upset over being lied to for so long. He imagined that the punishment could have been worse.  _ "Maybe my punishment should be worse?"  _ Peter mused.  _ "If anyone has a right to lock me away in a prison, it's probably May." _

At this thought, Peter's mind went to that of Ross. Some part of Peter felt the whole thing was being exaggerated. What was the big deal? Surely the man had better things to do with his time than to look for Spider-Man. After all, Captain America and the others who refused to sign were still at large. Shouldn't he be more focused on them?

Peter eased his mind by deciding this was all something that he didn't really need to think about right now. The pressing issue was going to be some kind of agreement with his aunt. He needed to help her feel comfortable with the news that he is Spider-Man.  _ "She must see that it is part of who I am now, but how do I do that without making her worry more?"  _ Peter was already getting a headache trying to figure this all out. He supposed what he needed was to get something to eat. He realized that his body was off because he never had a full meal the night before. He was so stressed about everything, he had only managed to eat some jerky in the car with May while driving upstate.

Slowly, Peter climbed out of bed. He pulled on some sweats and a t-shirt from his bag before combing his fingers through his hair. Making his way to the large bathroom, he took in his appearance. He guessed that it could be worse. He looked tired and perhaps a little pale, but he should feel much better after finding something to eat. Peter looked in the mirror and fixed his hair a bit more before exiting through the other door into the outer area that would allow him to exit into the hallway.

Peter stretched again in the hallway and looked towards his aunt's door. Slowly he made his way over. With a great deal of concentration, Peter listened for any sound from May. Finally, he could pick up the sounds of her light snoring. Peter smiled to himself. He was glad that his aunt was still sleeping soundly. There was no need for her to be up if she could get some much-needed sleep.

"Hey FRIDAY," Peter called softly.

"How may I help you, Peter?" The AI answered.

"Could you please make sure that my aunt isn't disturbed and let me know as soon as she wakes up?" Peter asked hopefully.

"Of course. Is there anything else I can do for you?" FRIDAY asked.

"Um…I need some breakfast," Peter said, feeling a bit foolish upon saying it.

"I believe you will find that food is usually available in the kitchen, Peter." He could've sworn he detected a bit of a snarky attitude from the AI with that response, but he decided to ignore that.

"Yeah…duh…silly me. Thanks FRIDAY." Peter made his way to the large kitchen which lit up the moment he stepped inside.

There were so many cabinets that Peter hardly knew where to begin. He decided the best bet was to start in the refrigerator. He was impressed to see that Tony had plenty of fresh food inside.  _ "Did he send someone to fill this up when we got here? I doubt Vision needs to eat anything, and Colonel Rhodes isn't here right now,"  _ Peter wondered.

He thought about making some pancakes or eggs and bacon, but his stomach growled impatiently. He decided he didn't want to take the time to find everything he would need to do that. Instead, he grabbed some orange juice and milk and started to look for some cereal. He found plenty of cereal in the cabinet next to the refrigerator. The cereal was stored in fancy plastic storage containers rather than kept in the store packaging. Peter settled for the one that looked like Frosted Mini-Wheats. Next, he located a bowl and a spoon and made his way to sit over at the counter.

The entire floor was silent. His enhanced hearing could detect some sound from above, and he recalled Tony telling him that he and Pepper were up there. He shrugged his shoulders deciding that they were probably early risers. Peter enjoyed the quiet. At home, he had to focus in order to keep his senses from being over stimulated. He felt an odd sense of peace here, and he supposed it could be the calm before the storm.

Peter filled his large bowl with the cereal and added the milk. He ate a lot these days in order to keep up with his fast metabolism, and the meager food from the night before hadn't been nearly enough. He would need to eat a lot. Peter went to pour a glass of OJ, but he realized that he had forgotten the glass. He briefly entertained the idea of drinking from the carton, but he decided to get up and look for a glass. After locating the correct cabinet and grabbing what he needed, he noticed a glass dish with fresh-looking muffins and a basket of fruit.  _ "How did I miss that?" _ He thought. Again, he shrugged his shoulders. This kitchen was so big that it was hard to take everything in at once. He grabbed what looked to be a blueberry muffin, and he snagged a banana from the basket before heading back over to his spot at the counter.

Peter stuffed the entire muffin in his mouth while filling up his glass with the orange juice. He used the OJ to wash down the rest of the muffin before peeling back the banana and taking a few bites.  _ "Man, I really need to be more careful about missing meals. I'm starving!" _ Peter chuckled to himself as he continued fueling his body with the goodies he found in the kitchen. After eating 3 bowls of cereal, a muffin, and a banana, Peter was emptying the carton of orange juice into his glass.  _ "I guess I should've skipped the glass after all _ ," he thought.

As Peter began to clean up, he realized that he hadn't started any coffee for May. He always made sure that her coffee was ready on Saturday mornings, and he wouldn't let this be any different. Peter, himself, had no need for coffee. He made the mistake of drinking a cup with Ned not long after getting his powers, and he felt like a wild monkey with ADHD or something.  _ "Maybe more of a Spider Monkey _ ," Peter mused.

After cleaning up his own mess, Peter scanned the kitchen for a coffee pot. What he found looked more like something a Starbucks barista would use. Peter blew out a frustrated breath before grabbing another muffin. He took a bite, and while he was still chewing he asked, "Hey FWIYAY…How do I wor dis cawee mawchee?" Crumbs flew from his mouth as he spoke.

"I'm sorry, Peter. I didn't quite understand you? Are you in distress? I can contact Boss if you…"

Peter finished his treat quickly, swallowed and quickly cut in, "NO! No…I'm fine. Sorry! I should have swallowed first." He briefly wondered if the AI even understood that explanation, but he decided to just go back to the question that he was trying to ask in the first place.

"FRIDAY, I'm trying to understand how this coffee machine works. Can you help me?" He clarified.

"I am happy to assist you, Peter." FRIDAY responded. "I can make any kind of coffee you'd like. Do you have a preference?"

Peter sighed.  _ "Of course Mr. Stark can't have a normal coffee maker!" _

"Umm…Could you just make sure that the pot is filled with some strong regular coffee for Aunt May when she wakes up?" Peter asked.

"Which kind of regular coffee would Mrs. Parker like? I can prepare a nice breakfast roast, French roast, Columbian, Sumatra…"

"Ugh…the French roast should be fine." Peter interrupted with the first one the sounded familiar.

"Ok. I will be sure to have it brewing as soon as Mrs. Parker awakes. She still seems to be in a deep sleep at the moment, so I will likely wait for some time." FRIDAY explained.

Peter was happy to hear that she was still sleeping so soundly. "That's great. Thanks!"

Peter walked back into his room. As soon as the door closed, FRIDAY's voice filled the space saying, "Mr. Stark is asking for you to join him in the lab on the second floor, Peter. I informed him that you are awake, and he is eager to show you some ideas for your web shooters."

"What about Aunt May?" Peter asked. "I thought I was supposed to stay with her until Mr. Stark gave her more access."

"Mr. Stark took care of granting access to Mrs. Parker this morning. I will be happy to fill her in and direct her towards the lab when she awakes," FRIDAY mentioned.

Peter shook his head in amusement,  _ "I shouldn't be surprised that Mr. Stark already managed to program the access for Aunt May." _

Peter looked around at the room. He had been hoping to explore this space some more, but he supposed that he should meet up with Mr. Stark and not keep him waiting.

Peter started making his way back to hallway when FRIDAY stopped him. "Mr. Stark would like you to bring your suit with you, Peter."

"Can you see me?" Peter asked the AI nervously.

"I do not have visual access into the private quarters, Peter. Mr. Stark simply added the request for you to bring your suit with you," FRIDAY clarified.

Peter blew out a breath, glad that he and May had their privacy. He walked back into the bedroom and grabbed his suit. He was happy that May had put it into his bag. It was a little surprising that she hadn't packed it into her own.  _ "Actually, it's surprising that she felt the need to pack it at all,"  _ Peter thought.

Peter took his Spidey-suit, slipped on a pair of sneakers, and made his way out of the room and towards the elevator. Peter paused as he walked by the kitchen. In a moment of decision, he quickly snatched one more muffin before hitting the button to call for the elevator. The delicious pastry was already gone before the elevator even arrived.

With a smile, Peter stepped inside as FRIDAY lowered it down towards the second floor.

" _ Maybe today won't be so bad after all."  _ He thought cheerfully.

* * *

Tony was waiting for him on the second floor and walked with him towards the lab.

"How'd you sleep? Good?" Tony asked, but he didn't really give Peter time to answer and continued as soon as he saw the slightest nod from the teenager. "Great. Listen, I would just as soon forget about that uncomfortable business with your aunt's fist and my face. We have more pressing things to worry about, so don't go fussing about that and apologizing for nothing, ok?"

Peter looked at him with surprise thinking,  _ "How did he know that I wanted to apologize?" _

Instead, Tony continued, "I've been thinking more about the Ross situation. I think it's important that you know how to best use your suit in order to protect yourself if necessary. Got it…"

Peter flinched, "Umm…" was all he got out

"…Good. This way." Tony directed him to the corner of the lab, and Peter was surprised to find a work space that seemed dedicated to the hardware for his suit.

"Mr. Stark…is this…" Peter saw a screen pop up with designs for what appeared to be his web-shooters. "WOW! I mean…you did all of this for…What I mean is…this is all for Spider-Man? For Me?" The look of wonder on Peter's face made him look more like an elementary school kid than a high school genius.

Tony gave him a big smile that clearly said,  _ "Look who you're talking to, kid" _ and merely shrugged his shoulders. "I have a curious mind. Sometimes I like to mess with something other than my own armor." He jerked his head towards another table. "I've got some arrows over there for Legolas…err well…Barton, but that's on hold seeing as he took a deal and is currently on house arrest."

Peter figured there was probably more to that story, but he wanted Tony to focus on the stuff for Spider-Man right now. He had so many questions.

"Thank you, Mr. Stark. This is amazing." He looked closer at the graphic in front of him. "This doesn't have a place for a canister of web liquid." Peter noted with confusion.

Tony smirked, "Obviously we need to think about how to feed the liquid to your shooter without the need to refill it constantly." The man's brows furrowed a moment and he looked more serious. "We can't have you trying to web yourself to a plane high in the sky only to run out and fall to your death, now can we?" At this, he looked up towards Peter with an accusing look.

Peter gulped. Mr. Stark had a point. He had the parachute, but even that had proved unreliable. He almost died just getting tangled in it under water. Peter noticed that Tony was still looking at him and waiting for a response, "Yeah…umm…no, that would be bad," Peter finally agreed.

Before Tony could continue, Peter asked, "What about the other suit?"

Tony raised an eyebrow at him, "You mean the one I showed you before?" He stood up straight, "I decided that one is the Avenger suit. You can have that one when you are officially a member of the team. I'm not sure you're ready for all the stuff that one can do yet anyway." Tony gave him a playful slap on the arm, "You haven't even mastered this one yet!"

Peter gave an embarrassed cough and responded, "I guess you're right. So, what do we do first?"

Tony gave him a smile and began to show him exactly what they needed to do. The men had no trouble busying themselves in the lab, working side by side.

* * *

May was comfortable. She took a deep breath and slowly blinked her eyes open. In a way that was not so different from Peter, she sat up quickly and looked around. Everything came flooding back to her. She looked around the massive room. It should have felt like a vacation, but these elaborate surroundings were more daunting for her. Her nephew was Spider-Man, and she was at the Avengers Compound trying to come to some kind of agreement about his welfare with Iron Man. May swung her legs over the side of the bed and placed her head in her hands. She looked up and around for a moment.

"Umm…Hello? FRIDAY?" She called loudly.

"Good Morning, Mrs. Parker. I have started some coffee for you in the kitchen at Peter's request. Is there anything else that you need?" FRIDAY asked her.

May smiled at the information about Peter making sure she had her coffee. He was thoughtful for a teenager. "What time is it?" May inquired.

"It is 10:51 A.M., Mrs. Parker. It was Peter's request to let you get some rest and not disturb you."

"Oh my God!" May burst out of bed and went for her bag. She was dressed quickly, and simply put her hair into a neat ponytail. She made her way into the bathroom to put on some finishing touches before leaving the room and making her way to the kitchen. She was surprised that Peter wasn't there.

Before she could even ask, FRIDAY's voice was heard once again. "I have informed Peter that you are awake, as he requested. He would like you to know that he is with Mr. Stark in the second-floor laboratory. You have been granted access and are welcome to join them after having something to eat and getting your coffee."

_ "He left me up here by myself?" _ May was a little hurt that he didn't wait, but she supposed that he was probably up much earlier, per usual. She realized he was trying to give her some space to rest and recover from the past few days.  _ "That boy…when will he realize that I'm the one who's supposed to look after him? _ " May thought.

She found the freshly brewed coffee ready for her. After going through multiple cabinets, she found a Stark Industries travel mug.  _ "Perfect! I'll take this coffee to go." _ She decided. Not far from the coffee, she saw a dish with muffins. She noticed that quite a few appeared to be missing and smiled knowing Peter probably helped himself. May didn't bother with cream and sugar. She was eager to find Peter and turned to go to the elevator. May paused for a moment and looked back at the muffins. In a moment of decision, she turned and grabbed a blueberry one and started munching on it as she pressed the button. She must have been hungry because it was gone before the elevator doors could even open. She quickly wiped away any crumbs from her face, stepped inside, and made her way to the second floor to find her nephew.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just keeping it light before the storm rolls in. Stay tuned. I'm trying my best to capture the characters for how they are portrayed in the films. I added the similarities to May and Peter because I feel like people pick up on similar habits after living together for a time. Anyway...reviews and feedback are welcome. Stay tuned for the next chapter!


	7. Saturday Afternoon

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you stick with me. I feel the need to spend a little more time on character development before getting back to the problem at hand. It's like the Marvel directors said in the Infinity War bonus features, "Character first!"

The elevator doors opened to the second floor, and May was quick to exit. She was on a mission to find Peter. She didn't even bother to ask FRIDAY which way to go. How hard could it be to track down her own kid? She made her way carefully down the hall, sipping her coffee (which was delicious) as she went along. Most of the rooms were empty. As she made her way towards the end of the hallway, she saw light and activity coming from one lab in particular. _"Bingo!"_ She thought to herself. May marched into the doorway, ready to give Peter a proper scolding for letting her sleep too long and leaving her alone.

However, what she saw stopped her in her tracks and made her take a step back out into the hallway. She leaned her head back against the wall just outside of the lab door. Carefully, she leaned to the side and turned her head so that she could spy on the two people working away in the corner of the lab.

_"My God,"_ May thought to herself, _"He looks just like he used to look when helping his Uncle Ben with things around the house!"_ May once again leaned back against the wall and took a moment to breathe. In her mind, she could see a younger Peter determined to help his uncle change a flat tire. Little Peter was so focused, and when he was really focused he would squint his eyes and nibble at his lower lip as he concentrated. May stealthily looked through the door again.

Peter was standing next to Tony at the lab table. They had some hologram image in front of them, but they were focused intently on something Peter had in his hand. Sure enough, May recognized the same intense look of concentration on Peter's face; the same look he had that first time he helped his uncle with the car tire. Perhaps even more interesting was the way Tony worked with him. Tony was leaning closely next to Peter and was patiently explaining something about the item in Peter's hand.

_"Ben used to patiently teach him things; the look on his face wasn't so different from the look on Tony's face right now,"_ May noted to herself. Again, May turned away and leaned back against the wall. If she didn't know any better, she might think Stark was excited to spend time with her dear nephew. She took another determined breath before stepping away from the wall and stepping into the room once more.

As she went to move into the room, she heard Tony say something to Peter about, "Go ahead and give it a try."

Before she had time to figure out what that meant, she found herself ducking to avoid being hit by something that was coming straight at her head. It was a good thing she had the travel mug, or Stark would have coffee all over his lab floor.

From her crouching position, May peaked up to see what looked like webbing stuck to the upper right side of the door frame. Slowly, she stood up, keeping her eyes on the webbing. She let out the breath she was holding and used her eyes to follow the webbing back to its source. Finally, her eyes landed on her nephew's shocked face. His mouth opened and closed, like a fish gasping for air.

"Aunt May…I'm so sorry…are you…I didn't mean it! FRIDAY told me you were up, but I didn't hear you or see you there! I probably should have noticed, but I was so focused…Mr. Stark…um…he was showing me…I'm so sorry! Are you ok?"

Before he could continue his frantic apology, Tony stepped in. "Take a breath, kid. She's fine. She just looks a little surprised." Tony gave May his signature smile before taking a step in her direction and turning to face her fully. "Gosh, May, you look well. It's so nice to see you looking refreshed! Pete and I were just talking about how we might be able to improve this suit of his…" he used a hand to direct her attention to Peter's suit on the table, "…and possibly upgrade his web-shooters." Tony now pointed to the webbing near her head, "But I'm sure you figured that part out."

May cleared her throat and stepped closer to see what they were doing. "You're working on the suit that Peter isn't going to be using for a couple of weeks?" She directed her gaze to Peter.

"Yeah, well…I mean…uh…I saw you packed it in my bag, and Mr. Stark wanted to work on it, so I thought it would be ok. It is ok, right? I'm sorry, Aunt May. I keep screwing this up. I didn't mean to upset…"

She cut him off, smiling and shaking her head at him, "Oh Peter, you make it too easy." She took a deep breath, took a sip of coffee, and continued, "I suppose I don't mind you working on it." She stepped up to the table and set her coffee down. "So, tell me…just how does this ridiculous spandex outfit help keep Peter safe?"

Peter clearly looked relieved.

Tony answered her question, "This ridiculously expensive suit has everything in it. Audio, video, tracking, parachute, heater, his own AI (he calls her KAREN), a place to store his web fluid canisters, and more," Tony beamed and looked quite proud of himself.

May blinked at the man, "So, you spy on my kid as he runs around in a skin-tight spider outfit?"

Peter coughed and tried to hide the chuckle that escaped from his mouth at Tony's horrified expression.

"I _do not_ spy on the kid!" Tony insisted. "I just…he needs to be monitored in case he makes a bad decision. You know…like getting taken up into the sky by a vulture-man and dropped into a lake!"

May continued to stare at him.

"Look, I don't sit here and watch the kid's every move! FRIDAY is connected to KAREN, and I simply get an alert if something is amiss!" Tony threw his hands in the air, and he looked completely flustered by May's interpretation of the suit.

Peter's aunt quirked her mouth up into a satisfied smirk. "Oh Tony…" she said, "You make it too easy!"

This time is was Tony's turn to blink. Did May just tease him? Is that what happened? He recovered quickly, "Ahem…well, you needed the win. You looked a little flustered after Spider-Kid nearly webbed you in the face."

The three looked at each other for a moment before a fourth person entered the room.

"Tony, I'm sorry to bother you, but I need you to sign a few things for me. I need to get this paperwork out to the board so that they can look it over before our meeting on Monday." With heels clicking on the floor, Pepper Potts herself stepped into the lab and took in the three flustered faces before her. She started by acknowledging May.

After setting down the papers for Tony, Pepper extended her hand to Peter's aunt, "You must be May Parker," she smiled. "I have to tell you... I am huge fan."

May shook Pepper's hand but looked genuinely confused, "A fan? Of me?" she asked.

"Absolutely!" Pepper confirmed, "It's not everyday I meet someone else who can put Tony in his place. Nice shot by the way." She nodded her head towards the slight bruise that was still visible on Tony's face.

May laughed nervously, "Haha…that…yeah. I feel like I should apologize to you for that, Pepper." She looked over to Tony, "Then again…I just really couldn't stop myself."

Pepper gave May a beautiful smile, "Please…no worries! I told Tony he was on his own, and I knew you would give him a proper scolding for dragging Peter into this mess."

"Excuse me," Peter said, "I am standing right here, you know!" He crossed his arms in front of him, looking indignant. "And no one dragged me into anything. I became Spider-Man without anyone's help. Mr. Stark…" he gave a wave in Tony's direction, "… just tried to help me. Or at least he helped me after I helped him…err…um…"

Tony sent a disbelieving look in Peter's direction. He placed a hand on his heart and pretended to be wounded. "That hurts, Pete. After all that we've been through…"

"That's enough, boys." Pepper spoke up. "Tony, I need you to sign those and then it is really about time we all get lunch." She looked at May, "You must be hungry…did you eat?"

As May and Pepper started to talk, Tony and Peter were distracted once again with the web-shooter.

"Well…" May started, "I had a muffin before coming down." Her stomach rumbled, and a blush appeared on her cheeks. "However, I didn't eat much yesterday, so I guess it would be good to eat something more substantial."

Pepper smiled and picked up the papers, noting that Tony had quickly scribbled his signature before focusing back on his project with Peter.

"A little more to the right…that might be too tight," he was telling Peter, who listened intently to his mentor.

Pepper smiled and shook her head a little and spoke again to May, "I think perhaps the two of us should get lunch, and we'll have someone bring sandwiches up to them." She nodded towards the two men in front of them. It was as if Pepper and May had become invisible.

"Peter…" May said, "Does that sound ok? Do you want someone to bring you a sandwich or something?"

"Huh?" Peter responded, "Oh yeah…sure, May! I'm starving. Um…could I get a nice big one with pickles? Oh…and I like it when it's squished down real flat!" Peter added.

"I'm sure we can make that happen," Pepper commented.

Tony added, "You know what I like, hon. Or you don't have to worry, sometimes I forget to eat what they bring me anyway."

"Hmm…yes, I know that Tony, but I do think your guest needs the food." She said. Tony smiled and gave her a nod in confirmation.

The two women stood and watched the men for a few more seconds before Pepper put her hand on May's shoulder. "Come on, there's no talking to men in the lab when they're like this." They began walking to the door before Pepper called back to get Tony's attention. "Don't forget, you promised me that I would have you all evening! I want you upstairs by 4:00 o'clock, Tony. Ahem…Tony?!"

"Yes, mam! 4:00 o'clock! Wedding discussion over dinner," he looked up and flashed her a smile, "I'll be all yours!"

"Good," Pepper said, "And then I'm sure Peter's aunt will appreciate getting her nephew back!"

Tony and Peter ignored her last comment as they were back to being completely engrossed in their project.

"Wow," May said, "that was…" they were walking down the hallway now back towards the elevator, "…Tony's really good with him, isn't he?" May asked the beautiful woman beside her.

"I've only met Peter briefly before today," Pepper confessed, "But Tony is definitely different since Peter came along."

"Really?" May asked as they entered the elevator and Pepper pressed the button for the main floor.

"Oh yeah…I'll tell you all about it over lunch," Pepper said with a smile.

* * *

Downstairs, Pepper led May to the cafeteria. This is where anyone else on duty at the compound could get something to eat, but it looked more like a nice restaurant than a cafeteria. The women walked up to what looked like a carving station where Pepper placed an order for them and asked that someone take food up to Tony and Peter.

May looked around with wonder, "This place really has everything, doesn't it?"

"I can have Happy give you the grand tour after lunch if you'd like. I have a feeling Peter and Tony will be busy for a while," Pepper added.

"Yeah…I guess," May looked down and started to play with the silverware as they sat down.

"I'm sure this is a lot to take in. I wanted to sit down with you because I do have some idea of what you're feeling," Pepper explained.

May looked up and gave her a quizzical look.

"Tony is like a big kid," Pepper went on. "I've worked with him and looked out for his interests for years now. Falling in love with him ten years ago…at the same time he became Iron Man…" Pepper took a deep breath, "…that was unexpected…and crazy!"

May studied her from across the table and waited for her to continue.

"I've worried about him everyday since this all started. We even took a break around the same time that Tony met Peter," she sighed, "The worry eats at me sometimes. I mean…he carried a nuclear weapon through a wormhole! I almost lost him then! It's hard not knowing what he will do next." She stopped and locked eyes with May, "I imagine that you are terrified for Peter. Probably even more worried for him than I am for Tony because Peter is so young."

This time it was May's turn to speak up. "I do worry. I'm not even a blood relative," May explained. "But my husband, Ben, and I made a promise to keep Peter safe." Tears began to form in May's eyes, "Pepper…how am I supposed to keep him safe when he is climbing skyscrapers and swinging around the city on webs?! I am out of my realm here!"

Pepper reached across the table and placed her hand on top of May's. "Over the years, I've learned not to worry about the things that I can't do for Tony. There are countless things that Pepper Potts is unable to do for Iron Man." She gave May's hand a squeeze. "However, Pepper Potts can so an awful lot for Tony Stark."

May nodded her head and blinked away the tears that were trying to form in her eyes. "So, you're saying that I should not worry about what I can do for Spider-Man, and focus more on what Aunt May can do for Peter Parker?"

"It's worth a shot, right?" Pepper asked.

"I guess you're right," May agreed. "That's all I can do right now." She looked up at Pepper and squeezed her hand again before releasing it and pulling her hands down onto her lap. "There was something else that you told me earlier…you mentioned that Tony was different since meeting Peter. What did you mean?" May asked.

Pepper leaned back in her chair. As she did, someone brought over a tray with their sandwiches. May blinked at the food in front of her. The bread looked like it was freshly made, and the meat was freshly carved. It looked nothing like the lunch meat May used to make Peter a sandwich at home. May took her plate off the tray and eagerly took a bite of the delicious-looking sandwich. She had to suppress a moan as it melted in her mouth. She really was hungry.

Pepper smiled at her as she took a bite of her own sandwich and placed it back down on the plate in front of her. She took a sip of her water before answering May's question.

"Well…Tony treats Peter differently. Oddly, he has more respect for Peter than he ever had for anyone else on his team." Pepper looked thoughtful for a moment, "except maybe for Bruce…" seeing May's confused face she continued, "oh…never mind. The point is that Tony treats Peter the way I think…" she looked at May before lowering her voice a little and finishing her sentence, somewhat insecurely, "…I think he treats him more like a son." She looked up, trying to read May's expression.

May wasn't sure exactly how to respond. She had witnessed some of that behavior herself before Peter had nearly sent his webbing into her face.

"I think I know what you mean…when I saw them earlier," she cleared her throat, "it reminded me of the way Ben used to be with Peter. Ben was the brother of Peter's father, Richard. The death of his parents was really hard, but Ben…Peter was his last link to his brother. Ben adored Peter, and it surprised me to see Tony act so much like Ben," May admitted.

Pepper chuckled a little before adding, "You know…" she smiled, "Tony has even started to drop what he thinks are subtle hints about the two of us having kids." She shook her head a little, "It seems that Peter has activated some kind of paternal instinct in Tony." She quirked an eyebrow at May. "I don't hate the idea, but it does worry me that something could happen to him. I'd hate to bring a kid into that."

May nodded her head in understanding, then gave a cheeky smile to her new friend, "Being a single parent isn't so bad. I love my life with Peter. I would just recommend learning all about school field trips and making sure your kids stay away from facilities that are experimenting with spiders!"

The two chuckled a bit more before digging back into their sandwiches and finishing lunch in a companionable silence.

* * *

After lunch, Pepper excused herself to get some more work done before meeting with Tony later. Pepper had put Happy in charge of showing May around the compound a little.

The man looked less than thrilled at first, but he seemed to take a shining to May after learning that she was responsible for the newest mark on Tony's face.

About an hour into Happy's tour, they were in the elevator heading towards the lower level.

"Excuse me, Mr. Hogan," Came FRIDAY's voice, "But I think you should know that Boss and Peter Parker have moved into the lower level training room. Would you like me to inform them of your arrival?"

Happy smiled over at May, "Oh! No, FRIDAY…I think we'll surprise them. I'm sure May is a little curious to see what they're up to."

May gave Happy a smile and nodded her confirmation.

They stepped off the elevator only to walk up to a window that overlooked something that reminded May of a giant gymnasium below. From the window, they could watch what was going on in the training area. May was impressed to see that Stark had set up a space that had massive blocks that mimicked the buildings in the city. She watched as Peter, in his suit, swung around the room on his webs as Iron Man flew above him. She was impressed to see how quickly Peter moved. Suddenly, Iron Man charged in Peter's direction. The boy used a quick maneuver so that he was crawling along the wall away from danger. He shot a web out over towards a large block and started swinging once again.

May couldn't help but to smile in wonder at her nephew as he twisted and flipped through the air with ease. Her smile quickly faded when she saw Iron Man blast a web loose and Peter tumbled to the floor below.

She squealed and leaned forward to get a closer look at the floor. Peter was shaking it off, and he removed his mask to look at Tony as the other man landed and removed his helmet. The two were talking to one another below when May turned to Happy with determination and said, "I want to hear what they're saying."

Happy pressed a button nearby and May could hear Tony's voice as he spoke to Peter.

"…You're doing a great job, Pete. However, I noticed that, when you swing around on your webs, you're too focused on the webs to take in other things around you. You need to be tapping into your abilities, use those enhanced senses to recognize danger."

"…I know, but…"

"No buts, kid! You won't do anyone any good if you go splat! Navigating with your webs should be more instinctual, so that you aren't so focused on it. You should practice more, especially since we’re trying to make sure you don’t run out of webbing. I can help you manufacture it here. As you move around, try to pay more attention to what else you can see and hear, ok?"

"Yes, sir," Peter confirmed. "Although, I don't know that anyone will be using technology like yours. These webs are really strong!"

"Never underestimate your opponent, Pete. You need to be prepared no matter what!" Tony gave Peter a firm look before once again replacing his helmet. "Ready? Let's go some more. Try using some of the adjustments we made to your suit. Become more familiar with your web combinations. I know we haven't perfected the web-shooters and you’ll still need those refills, so practice doing that quickly as well."

May watched as Peter replaced his own mask before shooting a web to pull himself back into the air.

She looked at Happy, "Thank you. I don't need to hear anymore." She looked thoughtful for a moment. "I think I would like to head back to my room, Happy. I'd like to do some thinking before Peter joins me later."

Happy gave her nod, "Of course, Mrs. Parker. I'll walk you back."

"Please…call me May," she smiled at him.

Happy didn't miss just how beautiful the smile was. He looked away to hide the blush he felt creeping onto his cheeks, "May…" he repeated.

After accompanying her back upstairs, Happy left May to her thoughts.

She had a pretty good plan forming in her mind. Now all she needed to do was hope that Peter and Tony would agree that it would be a good idea.


	8. Making Plans and Heading Home

Peter felt exhausted as he made his way back to the third floor. He ran into Happy after training with Mr. Stark, and he learned that Aunt May had gone upstairs earlier. He decided it was about time that he made his way back upstairs as well, after thanking Mr. Stark for helping him with his suit and train.

He found his aunt sitting in the large lounging area, reading a magazine. As he walked closer, he saw her set the magazine down on the coffee table and stand to look at him. Peter noticed her giving him a quizzical look.

May raised an eyebrow and crossed her arms, "What? No tights? I could've sworn I saw you swinging around in red and blue in the lower level earlier."

Peter froze and looked at his aunt with wide eyes. "Wait…what? You saw…uhh…sorry. Mr. Stark thought it would be important to run some tests and show me…"

May threw up her hands and signaled to Peter that he didn't need to explain. "It's…Peter, it's fine."

As Peter looked at her, he noticed that she had that playful twinkle in her eye.

_ "She’s messing with me again,"  _ he thought,  _ "That's a good sign, right?"  _ He spoke up, "So…how much did you see?" he asked with curiosity.

"I saw enough," May said as she turned to walk around the couch towards Peter. "It was…" she met his eyes, "it was impressive." She smirked, "at least up until the moment Iron Man made you fall on your face."

Peter blushed furiously, "Uhhh…yeah, well…He was just trying to make a point about…"

"…I get it," She cut in. "Happy was able to let me hear the audio of your conversation with Tony. It was…eye opening."

Peter squinted at his aunt and cocked his head. He had no idea what that meant.

Before he could ask, May wrinkled her nose and took a closer look at him. "Why don't we discuss this more after you get a shower? Pepper called to ask if we would like sushi for dinner. Apparently, that's what she and Tony are having, so she naturally felt it would be nice to have that sent to us." Peter didn't miss the look of amazement on his aunt's face.

He wondered for a moment if she could get used to living like this. "Ms. Potts is really nice," Peter added.

May nodded her head. "Well, you're not having dinner with me like that, so go take a break and get cleaned up, ok?"

"Yeah…sure, Aunt May." Peter walked by her towards his room.

He hadn't gone far before May called after him, "Oh! And just where is that fancy suit of yours? Don't think that I'm not going to want to keep an eye on that, Spider-Man!"

Peter stopped. A smile crept its way onto his face before he turned to answer her, "Mr. Stark took it. He said he was going to have it cleaned up before making some final tweaks. Happy was told to deliver it to you personally for ‘safe-keeping’ or something. I think he's trying to get on your good side, Aunt May."

_ "Let him try,"  _ May thought to herself. She cleared her throat a little before responding to Peter, "That's…thoughtful of him, I suppose."

"Yeah…it's great. Everyone just loves treating Spider-Man like a baby," Peter commented. His voice was careful though, and the words held some humor to them. He turned and kept walking towards his room. He didn't miss May's quiet remark as he walked away.

"You're my baby boy, Spider-Man," he heard her say.

May watched Peter go into his room.  _ "So, Tony is backing me up on keeping the suit from Peter for a while? Huh…maybe he isn't so bad."  _ She laughed quietly to herself before returning to the couch and picking her magazine up again.  _ "That, however, is something that I will never admit out loud." _

Inside his room again, Peter took a steadying breath. This had been a weird day. It wasn't a bad day; it was just…weird. He didn't really know what he expected to happen if May ever found out the truth, but he was pretty sure that this wasn't it. He walked into the bathroom and took in his own haggard appearance. Removing his shirt, he saw a bruise from where he collided with one of the blocks while training. He touched it and only winced a little. He could tell by the color of the bruise that it was already healing, so he wasn't too worried.  _ "I just can't let May see this," _ he thought.

As Peter started the water in the fancy and large shower, he wondered what his aunt meant when she referred to his conversation with Mr. Stark as "eye-opening." He shrugged his shoulders and finished undressing. He decided that he would likely find out after getting out of the shower.

The hot water over his muscles was soothing. He smiled to himself as he thought about working with Tony earlier. It was nice when they could just focus on science and technology together. His smile faded, however, when he thought about the reason behind Tony's eagerness to work with him. Tony was seriously concerned about people coming after Spider-Man, and he wanted Peter to be ready to defend himself.

Peter finished his shower and reluctantly turned off the water. He stepped out and used his hand to wipe the fog from the mirror. He smiled when he saw signs that his bruise was healing even more.

He wrapped a towel around his waist and exited into his bedroom to find something to wear. His stomach growled loudly as he searched through his bag. He pulled out a few items, and he decided he might snag another muffin before dinner. Pulling his shirt over his head and running his fingers through his hair, Peter grabbed his sneakers as he made his way back out to the kitchen.

May was standing up and putting some things on the table as he came back out. She looked up to see him leaning on the wall and pulling on his sneakers as he approached.

"Much better," she commented with an approving nod, seeing Peter looking more put together.

"Are you ok, Peter?" She asked, "You seem a little pale." She examined him more as he approached.

Peter made his way over to the dish of muffins and pulled one out. He looked over to her and offered a small smile. "I'm just hungry. I need to eat a lot to keep up with my fast metabolism," he explained.

May nodded slowly. "They called to say the food should be up shortly. It's a little earlier than we would usually eat at home, but I guess they know we're hungry."

"Uhh…yeah, I suppose." Peter agreed, taking a bite of the muffin.

"Why don't you grab me one of those and sit with me?" May said.

Peter took out another muffin and made his way over to the table, after snagging an orange from the fruit bowl as well.

May smiled at him as he sat down. "I've been thinking, Peter."

He passed her the muffin and began peeling the orange nervously. "Thinking?"

"A lot of thinking," she nodded. "This is still a lot to take in…you being superhuman and all. But I made a promise to take care of you, and I intend to keep that promise. I need to look after Peter Parker, and Peter Parker wants to stay on the ground and finish high school." May spoke with determination. She paused and took a bite of her muffin and looked up to make sure Peter was listening.

He nodded his head and indicated that she should continue.

"I saw Tony training with you earlier," she said. "I'm not so sure I can look after Spider-Man, and that worries me. However, Pepper mentioned earlier that I should focus on what I can do for you, Peter."

Peter gave her a confused look, but he figured he should still wait to speak.

May took a deep breath and set her muffin down. "The way I see it, we go home and let you finish high school in Queens. We continue doing our thing as Aunt May and Peter," she used her hand to point back and forth between the two of them, "with me keeping the teenager in line."

"Ok, but…" Peter started, but Aunt May cut him off and continued.

"As I said, I saw how Tony…er uh Iron Man... whatever! I saw how he worked with you, Peter. I heard him give you ideas on how to improve your skills and train you as Spider-Man, so…" May rubbed her head with her hand. "I can't believe I'm going to say this, but…I think you need Tony. I think Iron Man can help look out for the Spider-Man side of you."

Peter's eyebrows shot up and he gave his aunt a surprised look.

"Therefore…" she continued. "I am agreeing with what you proposed to us last night, with a few modifications."

They were interrupted by the elevator doors opening. There was a man in a chef's hat that smiled at them as he rolled a cart over to the table. Both May and Peter watched with amusement as the man unloaded loads of sushi, vegetables, and other delicious-looking side dishes.

"Um…" May looked at the man in confusion. "I know Mr. Stark and Ms. Potts were supposed to have some dinner. Are you sure…? Um… what I mean is…"

Peter finished for her, "Is this all for us?" he asked.

The chef didn't really answer. He just smiled and nodded his head before wheeling the cart back towards the elevator. He smiled and waved to the two of them as the doors slid closed.

"Ok…" Peter said. "This looks amazing!"

May watched as Peter loaded his plate with the food. She shrugged and followed his lead.

After taking a few bites, Peter got his aunt’s attention back to the earlier topic.

"You agree that I should continue with my routine? Peter Parker the high-school student during the day, and spending time as Spider-Man after school?" Peter asked.

"Mmmm…" May replied. "Yes, but your time as Spider-Man will be more like practice and training. Nothing too dangerous! You should do what Tony suggested and focus on your enhanced senses or whatever."

_ "She really was listening earlier!"  _ Peter realized.

"And we're going to talk to Stark about having you spend more time here," May added.

"Really?" Peter asked, perhaps a little too excited.

"I want you to get training in. Whether I like it or not, Tony has more experience with this. I think he, or other people that work here, can help you. It makes me feel better knowing that you aren't trying to figure out this Spider-Man thing alone." She looked at Peter and he noticed the fierce concentration on her face as she spoke.

"Wow…" Peter wasn't sure what to say. "May…I…"

Their eyes met, and Peter smiled at his aunt.

"I'm really lucky to have you, Aunt May." He finally said, "You truly are the best!" He meant every word.

She smirked, "I know, I know." Then she sighed, "I just hope Stark can still fit his head in that Iron Man helmet after I tell him I'd like to partner with him on this."

Peter gave a small laugh. "Yeah…"

"I think you should spend some of your winter break here… and your spring break as well. Probably a good chunk of summer vacation, too." She thought for a moment. "Hopefully that internship will be enough of a cover for your presence here." She went back to taking a few bites of her food.

Peter took a few bites of his own food before he spoke, "You know, my 16th birthday is over spring break."

"Yes, Peter. I know when your birthday is," she said with a roll of her eyes.

"You'll be here, right Aunt May?" he asked.

She looked up at him with surprise.

"I mean…I'll ask Mr. Stark if you can come. At least sometimes…he did give you access" Peter spoke quickly.

May smiled.  _ "At least he doesn't want to get rid of me yet."  _ She thought.

"Yes. We'll discuss this with Tony." She thought for a moment. "I'm not sure I can come every time, but…" She stopped and nodded towards the feast in front of them, "I think I can suffer through a few more visits here while you train."

Peter smiled again. "Cool! Yeah…I mean, I think this is a great plan!"

_ "There he goes again…looking like a kid on Christmas morning!"  _ May thought.

Peter noticed that she grew quiet. "You ok, May?"

"Haha… yeah, I was just thinking." She said, "One minute you're like this young and innocent looking kid and the next moment you're this determined and fierce superhero. It's a strange juxtaposition, Peter. I'm still getting used to it."

Peter smirked at his aunt before adding, "Me too!"

May looked surprised for a moment. Then she nodded her head, seeming to understand what he meant.

"Well, I think I've had enough of the Spider-Man side of you today," She said suddenly. "How about we enjoy the rest of this food and watch one of those movies together in your room before bed? I think we'll have to stay another night so that we can talk to Tony in the morning."

Peter gave her a huge smile, "Sweet! That sounds great."

"FRIDAY!" May called, surprising Peter with how comfortable she was becoming with these surroundings.

"How can I help you, Mrs. Parker?" the AI asked.

"Could you please inform Mr. Stark that Peter and I would like to talk with him in the morning?" she asked.

"Ms. Potts has blocked off part of his morning schedule, and Mr. Stark is not to be disturbed until after 10:00 AM. Shall I inquire about a brunch meeting?" FRIDAY's voice was clear and smooth.

"Hmm…. that should be fine. Thank you, FRIDAY!" May finished.

"10:00 A.M.," Peter commented. "Looks like you can sleep in some more, Aunt May," he teased.

May gave him a look. "Watch it! You try getting a good night of sleep after learning that there are people who want to fight your kid because of his super-spider abilities or whatever."

Peter winced and looked guilty. "God, May. I'm sorry. I…"

"I'm giving you a hard time, kiddo. I'll sleep better now that we are putting a plan in place," she soothed.

"ok…" Peter looked doubtful.

May changed the subject. "Come on. Let's clean this up and go pick a movie!"

Peter gave a smile and nodded in agreement.

They spent the rest of the time working together to clean up without much talking. As they cleaned up, FRIDAY confirmed the mid-morning meeting with Mr. Stark. They went back to Peter’s room where he excitedly chose a film called "ALIENS." May didn't really care what movie they watched. She just needed this time with Peter, with her kid. They sat together on the sofa in his massive room. Peter put his arm around his aunt, and she snuggled close to her nephew. This was her kid, and she would soak up these moments. The moments when he was just Peter. The moments when she knew he was safe with her.

* * *

The following morning, May and Peter joined both Tony and Pepper for brunch. Tony agreed that their plan was a good one, and Pepper made a note to create credentials for Peter as an official intern with access to the compound.

May didn't miss the fond look that Tony gave Peter upon hearing that he would be spending more time at the compound.

"I can't promise that I'll be here every time," Tony added. "Either Vision or Rhodes should be available while you're here though, kid." They didn't even need to ask if May could join him.

Pepper was quick to assure her that the same room could be available for her any time she wished to join Peter at the compound.

They all had a pleasant brunch together. They kept the conversation light and discussed plans for what would be Peter and May's next visit over his winter/holiday break. Both Peter and May would come up to the compound the day after Christmas and stay through New Year's. Tony also insisted that Happy would pick them up so that May didn't need to drive.

"My 16th birthday is over Spring Break," Peter added with excitement.

"Oh Hoh! Really?" Tony asked with interest. Pepper gave him a look. "We may just have to throw us a little shindig!" Tony added.

"That's not…" May started but stopped when she looked at Peter. He seemed interested in the idea. "Well…we have time to figure that out. Thank you, Tony."

He nodded at May.

Peter spoke next, "No offence, Mr. Stark. I appreciate everything you've done for us this weekend…" he looked at his aunt, "…but I think we should get going. I have a history quiz tomorrow, and I need to finish a paper for my English class. Plus, there's Spanish homework and a science thing to finish…" He trailed off and looked at the adults who were staring back at him.

Tony laughed, "This kid! So worried about his homework all this time!" He offered Peter a wink, "No offense taken, kid. You have to keep up your cover as Peter Parker, and he's a good student!"

"He better be!" May added. "The moment your grades start dropping, the less time you'll get in that suit!"

"That reminds me," Tony said. "Happy brought that expensive piece of spidey-wear back to you, right?"

May nodded her head. "Yes. It's in  _ my bag _ to go home."

"Good. If your bags are packed, we'll have someone load up your car and bring it around," Pepper suggested.

"Yeah, we packed before brunch," Peter confirmed.

"Happy!" Tony called.

"Yeah boss?" the man asked stepping forward from the shadows.

"Take care of that for me, will you?" He said knowing that Happy heard that part of the conversation.

"Sure." Happy said with a small frown.

* * *

A short time later, Peter and May were getting in the car and bidding farewell to Tony and Pepper. Peter was anxious to get home, so it didn't take them long to get on the road. Peter noticed that it was a little after noon when they left the compound. He gave a sigh knowing that he would probably be up late in order to finish his schoolwork.

He looked over at his aunt. She had a relaxed look on her face as she drove, and Peter was thankful.

"Thank you, Aunt May," he said to her.

She looked at him for a moment. She didn't need to ask as she knew that he appreciated her understanding with everything that was happening.

"I'm here for you, Peter." She said, "Always."

They shared a smile before their attention was back on the road ahead.

May heard the sound of plastic next to her and turned to see Peter taking a muffin out of a sandwich bag. She raised her eyebrows at him from the driver's seat.

Peter took a bite, "What?" he asked with crumbs dropping from his lips. "I took one for the road. Literally."

May shook her head and laughed. "Fast metabolism…" she noted. Then she gave a playful frown, "I'm just a little hurt that you didn't grab one for me."

Peter smiled and held up a second plastic bag containing a muffin for his aunt. She laughed out loud. Peter noticed it was a genuine and hearty laugh; one that he hadn't heard in quite a while.

She shook her head with a smile, "You eat it. I don't think I'll be able to eat until dinner. That brunch was huge!"

Peter shrugged at his aunt and had more to eat. He sighed contentedly from the passenger seat.

_ "We're going to be ok,"  _ he thought.  _ "Everything will be ok." _

He stared out the front window as they went along. If he had looked out his own window, he might have noticed the ominous clouds forming in the distance. The rain itself wouldn't be a problem, but it did represent the danger always lurking in the background.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> When I first wrote this story, I didn't actually know the date of Peter's birthday. However, his birthday over spring break will be an important part later in the story. Stay tuned, friends. Things are about to get interesting! The timeline is going to jump forward in the next few chapters, so get ready for things to speed up a little. Feel free to leave a review and share your thoughts. Any guesses as to how or when Ross might figure things out?


	9. A Familiar Routine

Tony and Pepper stood outside of the compound and watched as May and Peter drove away. This weekend certainly had not gone according to plan, but Tony personally felt like it was really much better than he planned.

"It looks like you're going to get to do right by the kid after all," Pepper commented, referring back to the conversation they had the night before.

Tony gave her a smile before putting his arm around her shoulder and guiding her back inside. "Yeah, their plan couldn't have been better. It was as if I came up with it or something."

They made their way to elevator, and Tony thought back to his conversation with Pepper the previous evening:

_ "Tony, this isn't helping us get our planning done," Pepper complained. Tony would have felt bad if it weren't for the amused smile on her face and the twinkle in her eyes. _

_ He had met her upstairs right around 4 o'clock like he promised; however, Tony was spending most of their time talking about his day with Peter. _

_ "Seriously, hon! Pete was great today. I couldn't believe how quickly he got to work in the lab. You would've thought he'd been working there and using the equipment for weeks!" Tony praised. _

_ They had been talking about Peter Parker over dinner, and they had finished their meal a short time ago. Some people from the kitchen were clearing the last dishes from the table. Pepper took advantage of the empty table space next to her and placed her elbow on the table, leaned her head in her hand, and watched Tony pace as he spoke. She knew she would have to let him get this out of his system if she was ever going to get a chance to talk to him about the wedding. _

_ Suddenly, Tony stopped pacing and looked at Pepper with a dumbfounded expression. "Oh God, Pepper. How did this happen?!" _

_ She raised her eyebrows and shrugged her shoulders slightly, but her head never left her hand as she spoke, "How did what happen, Tony?" _

_ "How did we get here? How did that kid manage to…I don't know…" He looked to Pepper for help in finishing that thought, but she stayed quiet, "…how is it that I LIKE him so much?" He threw his hands in the air as he spoke the last words. _

_ Pepper removed her head from her hand and stood up. She walked over to Tony and put her arms around his neck. She gave him a soft kiss on the forehead before looking him square in the eye, "You've lowered some of your walls over the years, Tony. You're letting people in…that's a good thing." She raised her left hand and wiggled her ring finger. "There's nothing wrong with letting people get close." _

_ He gently pulled her hands away and took a step back, shaking his head slightly. "I've let you close, and that is and has proved to be a good thing," he said before adding, "but not everyone wants to stay close once they get to know me. Either that or they turn out to be a major disappointment." _

_ Tony didn't have to elaborate on that with Pepper. She knew he was talking about the Avengers that turned their back on him with the signing of the Accords. But even more, he was referring to the disappointment that was the fall out with Steve Rogers. _

_ "It's not easy opening up your heart to people," Pepper agreed. "Sometimes we get hurt." She reached forward and lifted his chin so that he was looking at her again. "But sometimes…at the best of times, we find love." _

_ Tony gave her a look at the use of the word "love," but she continued before he could protest. _

_ "You know what I mean, Tony. There are different kinds of love; even friendship and brotherhood are a form of love. You can't find that if you don't at least try to let people get close, and I'm happy to say that you are…" she thought a second, "…putting yourself out there, so to speak." _

_ Tony nodded his head before smiling again. "You know what I think it is?" he said, raising a pointer finger in the air and shaking it as if to make a point. "If I were to design the perfect mini-me, I think he would look a lot like Peter…or act like him at least." He now waved his hand in front of him, "I won't say he's smarter than me…" _

_ Pepper suppressed the urge to laugh, but Tony noticed it nonetheless. _

_ "…but he does impress me," he went on. "Sure, I had to show him some things, but he naturally has all the tools he needs, both as Peter Parker and Spider-Man. With the right guidance and support, Pete can be unstoppable." He gave a laugh and added, "With that heart of his, he can be an unstoppable force for good." _

_ Pepper smiled and decided to sit down again. She knew he wasn't finished. _

_ "I guess that's why I saw him as an asset to the team." He frowned now and took a seat of his own not far from Pepper. "I saw that footage of some guy in a onesie stopping a moving car with his bare hands, and I knew I had to meet him. I just never expected to find a kid, especially one with a good head on his shoulders. It seemed like the perfect solution. It was like he would easily see that I was right, and Cap was wrong. I'd simply have him help me bring the traitor in and leave him with new gear for his troubles. It should have been so easy, right?" He looked up and saw the truth in Pepper's eyes. Of course things were never that easy. _

_ Tony sighed, "I should've been more careful when taking him to Germany. I'm a tech guy, Pep! I should've cut the security cameras that would capture us all on the tarmac at that airport. I read the Accords; I should've known Ross would want the new guy to be accountable!" _

_ Pepper leaned forward and asked, "Just how does Ross figure that he broke the Accords? He wasn't an Avenger." _

_ "That's not how Ross sees it." Tony scrubbed his hands over his face before adding, "The Accords are clear. No enhanced individuals are authorized to cross international boundaries at any time they wish. Since I had Ross' permission to go after Rogers and Barnes, I stupidly believed I could bring anyone else with me." Tony shook his head at his own foolishness, "Plus that business with the plane…the Accords indicate that any enhanced individual that is deemed a threat to the general public may be detained indefinitely without trial! Ross thinks Spider-Man put people in danger by stopping the plane the way that he did!" _

_ Pepper nodded her head in understanding, and she couldn't suppress a shudder at the thought of poor Peter being locked away indefinitely. _

_ "God, he was only trying to impress me," Tony admitted. "And I rewarded him by taking away the one piece of equipment that could keep him safe as he tried." _

_ "Tony…" Pepper soothed, "You can't expect to be perfect. Ask any parent or guardian and you'll learn that kids don't come with an instruction manual, especially super-human ones. It's hard to know what the right call is going to be, and hindsight is always 20/20." _

_ "I need to make this right, Pepper," Tony said with determination. "One way or another, I will find a way to do right by that kid." _

_ FRIDAY's voice suddenly filled the room, "Boss, Mrs. Parker and Peter are requesting a meeting with you in the morning. Ms. Potts has your schedule free after 10:00 A.M. Would brunch be agreeable?" _

_ Pepper gave him a sheepish smile, "I had a feeling we might not make progress tonight, so I left us some time in the morning as well," Pepper explained. _

_ Tony smiled at her before answering his AI. "Yes. You can go ahead and confirm the brunch FRIDAY." _

_ "Very good, Boss," FRIDAY replied. _

_ "Tony, that reminds me," Pepper began. "I know you want to make things right and be there for Peter, but we will need to respect May's wishes. She is Peter's legal guardian. We need to hear her out in the morning. If you want a chance with the kid, you are going to need to earn a little trust from May." _

_ "Of course!" Tony smiled and gave a cocky grin, "I'll be on her good side in no time!" _

Shaking his head at the memory, Tony set off to finish his weekend with Pepper. He briefly found himself wondering if she would be willing to discuss plans for Peter's next visit, but he decided to keep his mouth shut. He owed Pepper some time free of any talk about Spider-Man.

* * *

Back in Queens, Peter was anxious to get back into his routine. On Monday, Peter filled Ned in on every detail of his visit upstate. Ned listened with a great deal of fascination and asked Peter not to leave out anything interesting about the Avenger's facility and all of its amenities. Peter had his phone back, but May held firm about keeping his suit under lock and key. If Peter was honest, he had no idea where she even had it hidden away. He did, however, use his phone to send messages and updates to Tony.

After school, Peter found a private place to fill in Ned on some of the scarier details relating to Ross. He begged his friend to be even more careful with his identity. To his credit, Ned looked genuinely concerned and swore to Peter to be more careful in the future.

As time moved forward, Peter was surprised at how easy it was to focus on school during the day and answering May's questions at home. Being grounded wasn't so bad. He thought for sure that he would miss his patrol time, but it didn't seem to be as important as helping May adjust. What May did not know was that Peter kept his old web-shooters and mask in his backpack (in case of emergency, of course). Thankfully, he hadn't needed them.

Peter was becoming so accustomed to this new routine that he didn't even notice that the two weeks were over until May came into his room with the red and blue suit.

"It's been exactly two weeks since I stood in this doorway and saw you in this thing," May said while holding the equipment out in front of her for Peter.

Peter carefully took the suit from her hands but remained quiet.

"I have to admit, Peter," May continued, "You've taken your punishment in stride, and you've kept to your end of the deal. I appreciate that more than you know, and that is why I need to stick to my end of the bargain." She took a deep breath, "Here is where our agreement with Tony truly begins. Tomorrow, you go to school as usual. When the day is over, you may return to the streets with your webs and the suit. However, you are to focus only on things that will help you to improve your abilities."

Peter nodded his head in agreement, "I understand, Aunt May."

"Peter, you cannot take any unnecessary chances. You heard what Tony said…Ross is looking for signs of Spider-Man," She reminded him.

"I know, May." Peter looked thoughtful for a moment. "I learned a lot the past two weeks, too. I was thinking about it. I think I took so many of the risks I did because I wanted to get Tony's attention and impress him."

May offered a sympathetic and understanding smile.  _ "He really wants a father-figure in his life,"  _ she thought.  _ "If only it didn't have to be Tony Stark!" _

"I promise to stick to the small stuff. Honestly, I am mostly interested in practicing what Tony mentioned about becoming more instinctual with my web-shooters so that I can also be aware of what my enhanced senses are picking up. I think that's going to be the most important thing."

May nodded, "It's settled then. Just promise you won't be home too late tomorrow, ok? I know tomorrow is Friday, but it would help me to know you won't be gone too long."

"I'll be home by 10:00," Peter tried.

"You'll be home by 8:00," May corrected.

"How about 9:00?" Peter asked hopefully.

May closed her eyes and took a breath, "ok…but that means that you are home at 9:00 P.M. sharp and not one minute later!"

"It's a deal!" Peter agreed. He put the suit down and stepped forward to give his aunt a hug. "Love you, May!"

"I love you, too!" She whispered back.

The next morning, Peter had his suit in his backpack, and he was excited about the day ahead.

He was heading out the door when May called to him, "Please be careful! 9:00 o'clock, Peter!"

"You got it, May!" Peter called back.

Peter grabbed a breakfast burrito on his way to school (his second breakfast of the day). Upon arrival, he motioned Ned to join him by his locker. After looking around carefully, Peter showed him the inside of his bag.

"Dude!" Ned said, "You got it back?"

"It's been two weeks," Peter smiled.

"Are you going out today?" Ned asked.

Peter wagged his eyebrows at him, "What do you think?" he asked. Seeing his friend’s excited smile, he added, "I just need to be home by 9:00. I'll probably try to get there sooner, though. I don't want to give May a heart attack on my first day back out there."

"Badass…" Ned mused, "So what will you do?" He lowered his voice and added, "Will you go looking for more of those weapons?"

"No," Peter answered. "I need to lay low, remember? I'm mostly going to be taking care of small stuff, staying below the radar, and doing some training exercises with my webs."

Ned was looking at Peter with wide-eyed fascination, before asking, "Can I come?"

Peter rolled his eyes and laughed, "Dude! How would you come? You plan on trying to web-along behind me with my old web-shooters or something?" he joked (keeping his voice low).

"Can I do that?" Ned asked.

"What? No, Ned! You'd kill yourself. It's much more dangerous than it looks, and I'm uniquely equipped to maneuver around the way that I do," Peter reminded him, referring to his enhanced abilities.

"Ok, ok! I guess I knew that was a long shot." They walked a little further before Ned asked, "What if I just walked along with you and waited to see you change into the suit?"

"Ew, Ned! We talked about this. It's creepy to have someone see me change. Ideally, that is done without an audience!" Peter replied.

Ned thought for a moment, "I don't mean that I would, like, watch you. I could just stand guard somewhere as you got into the suit! I can warn you if anyone is coming…give you a signal!" He spoke quickly and with a great deal of excitement.

Peter was about to turn him down, but then thought better of it. "Maybe you're onto something, Ned."

His friend smiled.

"I've lost my backpack too many times, and it is always a risk changing. It's not like I can change at home all the time because that's too risky. People would connect me to May." Peter concentrated, "Maybe you can help me scope out good places to change and stand guard like you suggested. Then you can grab my bag and keep it safe. I'll have my phone, so I can contact you when I'm done. We could set up a meeting place, and you can bring my bag back to me," Peter suggested. "Is that ok, or is that asking too much?"

Ned looked ridiculously excited. "Are you kidding? That's amazing! I would be like your assistant; the guy in the chair that doesn't need the chair!"

Peter smiled at his friend. He couldn't help but think that Tony would be proud of this plan. Surely it would help him to minimize the possibility of getting caught taking his mask off.

"It's settled then. We'll discuss some spots over lunch, and then go out together after school."

"It will be an honor, Spider-Man," Ned slapped a hand to his mouth before whispering an apology.

Peter just shook his head. They were the last ones in the hallway, so they were safe.  _ Wait…empty hallway? _ Peter took a hold of Ned's arm and quickly pulled him into their next class just as the bell rang.

It was after school, and Ned and Peter were already standing by an empty alleyway together.

"Ok," Peter said, "What do you say if you see someone else walking towards the alley?"

Ned answered, "I'll be all loud and like…HEY MAN, THAT'S MY CHURRO!"

Peter nodded, "Good, yeah…" he started into the alley, only for Ned to pull him back.

"Wait, could you like come out and give me a shout-out or something?" Ned asked. "Maybe I could record it on my phone, and you could be all like 'Hey Ned! Good to see you! Cool Shirt!' or something?"

"What? Come on, man," Peter rolled his eyes. "That is a bad idea. It's best if we don't draw too much attention. No recording! I'm laying low, remember? Plus, it may be better if I'm not obviously connected to you right now."

"Fine…" Ned agreed with some disappointment.

"Look," Peter said. "No phone and I'll give you a salute or something as I take off down the street."

"Awesome!" Ned said eagerly.

"Great," Peter said impatiently (he really was ready to get back into his suit now). "Please don't forget my bag. I'll text you a location when I'm done."

Ned smiled and nodded as Peter entered the dark alley, then he made his way to the corner to keep an eye out for anyone. Ned wasn't waiting long before he heard a "thwip" sound over his head and a "woohoo" from his friend. True to his word, Peter gave him a salute with one hand while shooting out a web with the other. Ned watched with his mouth agape and saw Peter disappear around a corner further down the street.

_ "I still can't believe my best friend is Spider-Man,"  _ Ned thought to himself. He continued to look in the direction in which Peter took off for a minute before turning to recover Peter's personal items from the alley. It was a little awkward carrying two bags, but Ned was happy to help. He made his way home to wait for further instructions. "Guy with the bag!" Ned mused as he began to head home.

Already blocks away, Peter was elated to be swinging around on his webs again. Making his way around the buildings and skyscrapers felt like pure freedom! Peter probably spent over an hour just having fun with his webs and getting comfortable with some of the web combinations and settings. He stopped on a rooftop to catch his breath and look around a little. He decided to do some flips and practice some wall-crawling and balancing exercises. After a while, he jumped down to the street by a food truck selling pulled-pork tacos. The vendor looked surprised to see him, but shrugged it off and asked for his order. Peter was about to pay for his food when the man told him it was on the house. Apparently, Spider-Man had helped his nephew get his bike back. Peter thanked the man, but couldn't leave him with nothing and decided to put a big tip in his jar. With his taco in one hand, Peter used the other hand to shoot a web and pull himself back up.

Not too far away, Peter found an empty fire escape. He pulled his mask up far enough to eat his meal. It was delicious, and it was exactly what he needed before starting his next task. Pulling his mask back on all the way, Peter took off with his webs once again. This time, Peter tried focusing less on where the webs were going or using fancy maneuvers. He decided to really try focusing on his enhanced hearing. As he moved around, he tried to isolate and identify different sounds. Before long, he was able to distinguish between sirens and alarms, car horns and door bells, friendly banter and arguments. Next, he tried to listen carefully for more specific things. Not long into this exercise, he started listening for voices that sounded distressed. He heard what sounded like a little boy crying for his mom and stopped to look around. He was sticking to the side of a building when he spotted him. From his perch, he saw the kid crying on one side of the road and his mother frantically looking for him on the other. He didn't know how they were separated, but he decided it wouldn't hurt to help out on this one.

Peter shot a web and swung down to the street beside the boy. "Hey, buddy!" he said as he landed.

The boy looked startled for a moment before saying, "You're the Spider-Man!" Peter didn't miss the look of admiration in the child's eyes.

"Yes, I am. What's your name?" Peter asked.

"Miguel," the boy answered, then sniffed, "I can't find my mom."

"Don't worry, pal. I could see her just across the street ahead of us. I'll help you." Peter held out his hand and the young boy took it with complete trust.

They took a step before Miguel asked, "We're walking?" he said confused. "Can you swing me to my mom?" he added hopefully.

Peter looked around. There were a lot of cars, and there were a number of people pushing their way along the sidewalk. Peter momentarily wondered how more people didn't stop to pay them any attention, but he supposed the people of New York were becoming desensitized to seeing something as strange as a guy in red and blue spandex.

"I guess that would be quicker," Peter agreed. "Ok…" He bent down towards Miguel (who was smiling ear to ear), "put your arms around my neck and hold on tight."

The boy did as he was told, and Peter shot a web up when he was sure that Miguel was secure. Peter kept one arm around him as he used the other to hold onto the webbing and swing to the other side of the road. They landed not too far from his mom, and she turned the moment she heard something plop down on the sidewalk.

"Mommy!" Miguel yelled as he let go of Peter and took off running to her side.

"Oh, Miguel!" She cried. "I told you to be more careful about walking away from me."

"I'm sorry. I thought you were with me in the group of people that crossed the street," Miguel put his head down, and Peter noticed that he was embarrassed to be scolded with his hero nearby.

"Spider-Man helped me find you, Mommy!" Miguel squealed with delight.

His mother looked up and gave Peter a grateful smile, "Thank you, sir. I couldn't see where he went!"

"No worries, mam," Peter said giving her a small salute.

He didn't wait to hear if she said anything else. He shot another web and was back up and moving along in no time. Peter felt happy that he was able to help someone, and he decided to try listening again. Helping people with those things seemed perfectly harmless, and Peter was eager to see if anyone else might need his assistance. After going a few more blocks, Peter felt a chill go down his spine as he heard a familiar voice in distress.

"No! Please! You can't take that!" She screamed.

"Oh No!" Peter realized. "It's MJ!" Again, Peter stopped by sticking to the side of a building and looking around.

He spotted her another block away, trying desperately to hold onto her purse as a man was trying to roughly pull it away. Worried for her safety, Peter took off quickly in her direction.

"Hey, Man!" Peter yelled as he landed near the two. "That bag does not go with your outfit! Hands off!" He shot a web onto his forehead with one hand, and he used the other hand to shoot a web onto his chest. The guy instinctively reached towards the webbing on his head, letting go of MJ's bag. She took a step back, clutching it close to her side and watched Spider-Man pull the man away with a yank at the web attached to his chest.

"Aghh!" the purse-snatcher yelled as he was yanked forward by Peter.

When he was closer to him, Peter said, "Dude! Man-purses are so uncool!" He pushed the man over to a nearby wall and shot two more webs quickly securing each hand to the wall behind him.

"Hey!" the guy yelled, "Let me outta here…mmmph!" Peter shot another web over his mouth to shut him up.

He moved over to his friend and quickly pulled her over to an empty side street and away from the bad-guy. "Are you ok?" he asked worriedly.

"Thanks, Peter!" she breathed with a sigh of relief. "I was just at the ATM getting grocery money for my parents. Things are tight right now, and there was no way we can afford to lose this money!" A funny look crossed her face as she looked up towards Spider-Man.

"It's no problem, I'm glad I could hel…help." Peter's voice trailed off as he softly finished that sentence.  _ "Did she just say Peter, or did I imagine that part?" _

He looked to her face to find her studying him, as if trying to look beyond the mask.

The eyes of his mask had gone wide as he stared back at her. "Ahem…uhh…what? Erm…Did you say something, miss? I thought I heard you say a name or something. Was it Patrick?" He tried using the same accent from DC, but it sounded more like a strange combination of a British and Brooklyn accent.

MJ raised an eyebrow at him and put a hand on her hip. She looked around carefully before she spoke again. "Do you think I'm stupid, Parker?"

He didn't answer. This was dangerous. He quickly snatched her around the waist and shot a web up the side of the building next to them. MJ only gave a slight squeal of surprise as Peter lifted them off the ground. Peter took them up to the roof and looked around carefully.

"You should call the police and tell them that Spider-Man stopped and secured a purse snatcher at the corner of…umm…" he looked over the side, "75th Avenue and 169th Street."

She nodded and took out her phone. While she was on the phone, Peter paced back and forth. He was trying to think of what to do next.

MJ ended the call and said, "The police are on the way. I told them that I was just a witness."

Peter could already hear the sirens. "We should get farther away," he said, snatching her once again.

"Wait!" was all she got out before Peter was moving them over to another spot, putting some distance between them and the police.

Once safely on another roof, MJ caught her breath and scolded him. "Stop that! I'm not a huge fan of heights. Why do you think I really stayed on the ground in DC?"

Peter didn't answer, and he chose to instead interact with his AI, "KAREN scan the area for cameras. Let me know if any of them have a view of this roof."

MJ cocked her head but chose to wait patiently for an explanation. However, she didn't look at all amused.

"You're all clear, Peter." KAREN replied.

Peter turned back to MJ. He took a few steps in her direction and slowly removed his mask.

Despite using his name, MJ somehow still looked surprised to see his face. She quickly pushed away her surprise and tried to look at him as if unfazed. "Well, I've had my suspicions for a long time now, but it's weird to see them confirmed." She looked him up and down. "Not bad, Peter." She quirked an eyebrow at him.

"What? Seriously? What do you mean you were suspicious? How long have you…" He didn't finish his question. Instead he threw up his hands, deciding she understood what he was asking.

"Come on, Peter. I'm very observant, remember?" She crossed her arms over her chest. "Honestly, I can't believe anyone else missed this!"

Peter still looked confused, so she continued.

"What was it? Like, a year ago when you were tripping over your feet and wearing those huge glasses? You could hardly manage in gym glass, and you were always fighting a cold or something!"

Peter looked uncomfortable.

"You might have been invisible to everyone else, but I notice everyone. I saw you then…a struggling kid, flash's favorite target. Then we had that field trip and you started looking all pale and acting weird. No one else noticed, but I did! You were sick the next day, but when you came back…"

Peter remembered that day. He had changed drastically, but the kids at school seemed to brush it off as Parker finally "blooming" or reaching puberty or something. Apparently, MJ was never fooled. Even Ned had shrugged it off then.

MJ continued and started listing her evidence and observations faster, pacing as she talked, "You came back looking healthier than ever before. No glasses, tighter shirt, no pimples, steady on your feet! It was crazy! Then…everything happened with your uncle, so I left it alone. You started disappearing, which I tossed aside as grief. But then this guy starts popping up around town and stopping petty crimes. He popped up when you were MIA. The pattern only increased. Then, I see "Spider-Man" alongside the Avengers in Germany at the same time when you started your Stark Internship! It should be obvious, right? I can't believe everyone else is so stupid! Don't even get me started on DC or Homecoming!" She stopped pacing and turned to look at Peter.

His mouth was hanging open. She was right. It should've been obvious. Yet, no one would expect the nerdy kid to be a superhero. No one except the very observant Michelle Jones.  _ "Oh my God, I hope Ross doesn't put that together." _ Peter pushed that aside as unlikely since that man wasn't a student at Midtown Tech.

"Ned knows, right?" She asked knowingly. "I'm surprised no one else has noticed your hushed conversations. I mean, what is it with our generation? You're lucky the other kids are so obsessed with their phones; it keeps them from observing the world around them. I fight that, though. I prefer to keep an eye on the real world as opposed to the virtual one on my phone." She pointed towards Peter. "Clearly my powers of observation paid off." She gave him a hard look. "Why am I the only one talking?"

Peter rubbed his gloved hands over his face before finally speaking, "MJ…this is…I mean…I'm supposed to be more careful. I thought I was! This is very dangerous! I am supposed to be keeping a low profile right now!"

She looked pointedly at his suit but didn't speak.

Peter noticed, "This is for training purposes. I promised Mr. Stark I wouldn't get involved in anything too big and attract attention. A purse snatching wouldn't normally be a big deal, and it was you! I couldn't just keep going and ignore it!" He blew out a breath. "You CANNOT tell anyone. It's hard enough for Ned, but he knows to be especially careful right now!"

"Slow down, Peter!" MJ stopped him. She stepped forward and put a hand on his shoulder, "I never said a word once to you before. I don't intend to make a big deal of it now." She quickly removed her hand and stepped back, looking at him, "I'm really not the type to make a big deal of anything…in case you haven't noticed."

He gave a small laugh without any real humor, "I noticed."

She continued, looking at him with her eyes squinted, "Out of curiosity, what's the big deal all of a sudden? Ned practically gave you away before Homecoming. I mean…come on… 'Peter knows Spider-Man'" she mimicked Ned's voice from that day in gym class.

"I'm in trouble, MJ," he admitted to her. "After what happened in Germany and with Liz's dad, I'm being accused of violating the Accords! Spider-Man is an enhanced individual, and Secretary Ross wants my identity in order to make me sign! It would be the end of my life as I know it! Nothing would be the same! Please understand…I can't sign!" He gave her a pleading look, hoping she would understand.

"Dude! The government does not have a good track record when it comes to 'arrangements' with people in the minority, enhanced or otherwise. You don't need to explain it to me. The Accords are bullshit." She stated simply.

"Huh…ok." Peter said, only mildly surprised at her response. He supposed he should have expected that from her.

They looked at each other for a few moments.

MJ shook her head finally, "This is wild, and the uniform raises some questions. I have many questions, actually. However, I really need to get back home. My parents will be worried."

Peter's eyes went wide, and he pulled out his phone. It was already 8:00 o'clock. He shot a quick text to Ned…

**Peter** **: Meet me behind MJs house in 30 minutes.**

**Ned** **: Is that a good idea? She might see us, dude!**

**Peter** **: Just do it! I'll explain later.**

**Ned** **: Ok. See you in 30 mins**

"So, are you going to help me down? I'm not using that rusty fire escape, Parker!" MJ scolded impatiently.

Peter tucked his phone away and pulled his mask back on. "Let's get you home. Put your arms around my neck and hold on tight," he said as he guided her closer to the side of the building.

She reluctantly agreed, and Peter was shooting his webs to navigate them both towards her house. MJ had a tight grip around his neck and even wrapped her legs around his waist for extra security, hugging him tightly. They weren't too far from her house, and Peter decided that this was the fastest way to get her home. He carefully lowered them down in the alley behind her building.

MJ was still holding onto him tightly. Peter cleared his throat, "Ahem…we're uh…we're here. You can let go now."

MJ had her eyes closed, but slowly opened them to take in her surroundings. Recognizing solid ground beneath them, MJ quickly let go and stepped away, embarrassed that she had been holding onto him like that.

"I'll go up on the building and keep an eye on you as you go inside. No one else will bother you tonight."

She smirked at him, "Thanks for your assistance, Spider-Man." She turned to walk away, and Peter started to climb the wall. She called back to him, "Oh! I intend to have a further inquiry with you later!" She continued towards the front and Peter got up and crawled where he could see her safely inside.

Once she was in the building, Peter held onto the wall so that it was behind his back and slammed his head on it. "Ugh! This is bad. I'm going to have to report this to Mr. Stark. KAREN, what time is it?" he asked as he turned to climb the rest of the way to the roof.

"It is 8:16 P.M." KAREN answered, "Your friend should be expected to arrive around 8:32 P.M., judging by the time you sent your last message to him."

Peter sighed, he had time to text Tony before Ned arrived. While he used his phone, the messages were sent securely through KAREN and never stayed on his device. Tony's responses were usually vague so that no one could guess that Peter was not just an annoying intern.

**Peter** **: Successful day back. Lots of practice. Made progress. Ran into a girl from school. Apparently, she's known the truth about me all along. Plans to continue to keep it to herself. Thought you should know. Sorry.**

**Stark** **: We will need to talk more at the office.**

Peter sighed. He knew that meant that Tony would call him over a secure line later.

He didn't have to wait much longer for Ned. His friend was walking quickly down the street.

**Peter** **: Walk behind the building and drop my bag. Wait for me at the corner.**

**Ned** **: Ok**

Peter watched as Ned followed his instructions. Once Ned was stationed at the corner, Peter jumped down and quickly shed the suit and stuffed it in his bag before putting his own clothes back on. He met Ned at the corner.

"Thanks, Ned!" He said, making his friend jump slightly.

"Dude, what is going on? Why did we meet here?" He asked. Ned looked up to see MJ at her window, looking out at them. She waved down before giving them the finger with a smirk and closing her blinds.

Peter shrugged at his friend, "It's a long story. Walk with me to my house and I'll tell you everything."

"I'll text my mom and tell her I'm staying at your house tonight." Ned didn't need to ask if Peter was ok with it since this was something fairly normal for them.

Peter nodded, "I'm going to let May know we'll both be there around 9:00. I just hope we aren't a minute late, or she will kill me!"

The two friends made their way back to Peter's apartment. Peter was filling in Ned along the way.

Peter paused in his story, and Ned seemed content to let him sort through his thoughts a bit. Peter felt like it was important to keep May and Tony informed about everyone who knew his secret. It was just too bad that he was forgetting to warn them about someone else.


	10. Winter Break: Part 1

Time surged forward quickly. Peter was pleasantly surprised by how MJ handled his secret. She was a really good ally, especially since she helped to keep Ned in check. Anytime Ned started to even get a funny look on his face, MJ was ready to perform any necessary damage control. It was a huge weight off Peter's shoulders. MJ even started to take turns with Ned as far as helping to keep his belongings off the street and out of the wrong hands. After the last incident with MJ, Peter started going out in shorter increments on most days. He always chose about 2 days a week when he would spend a longer time patrolling the neighborhood, and he altered the days to avoid a recognizable pattern. Most school nights, he finished his training by 5:00 P.M., so he would meet either Ned or MJ behind a restaurant to get food for dinner. Occasionally, both of his friends were there to meet him and listen to the stories about the day's adventures. Most of the time, they opted for take-out and took it back to the apartment to eat with May. Then, they would go to Peter's room to work on homework. If they weren't at his apartment, Peter would end up doing homework at one of his friend's houses. He enjoyed the routine, and both May and Tony approved of the way Peter was balancing his schedule. Things were finally looking up, and Tony told May that he hadn't heard anything from Ross. Life was comfortable, and Peter couldn't wait to spend his winter break back with Tony upstate.

He only had to wait a couple more weeks. It was early December, and Peter was finishing one of his shorter rounds. He planned to meet both of his friends that evening behind one of their favorite pizza places. MJ texted that she had already ordered a couple of pizzas to take back and eat with May. Peter was feeling super confident with his web combinations. Utilizing the different settings was second-nature to him now, and he was able to focus on hearing and seeing more of the happenings in the city below. It had been a quiet patrol; he returned a lost dog, stopped a grand theft bicycle, and helped an older lady with a walker cross a busy intersection. Life was good as the "Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man."

As Peter made his way towards the pizza place, he could already see Ned (all bundled up) standing by the corner. It was getting really cold in the city, and Peter was almost sure that he heard Ned's teeth chattering with his enhanced hearing. Peter saluted his friend and made his way into the alley. It didn't take Peter long to change and meet Ned at the corner.

"Ready, dude?" He asked Ned. "Ned?" he said again when he didn't get a response. "You ready to go inside?"

"Frr…Frr-ozen." Ned chattered back. "I'm-I…uh…d-don't think I can m-move."

Peter laughed at him, "Come on, let's get you inside" he said, tugging on his friend's arm to get him moving.

They found MJ inside the pizza shop paying for their dinner.

"N-next t-t-time you w-wait in the cold!" Ned snapped at her.

She rolled her eyes, "Don't be such a sissy, Ned. Here…" she handed him the pizzas to carry. "…these will keep you warm as we walk back."

"Ahh…" he sighed as he felt the warm boxes on his cold hands. "Thanks, MJ." He followed them back outside and watched the other two share a sly smile. "Hey! Wait! You're not going to make me carry these the whole way, are you? Um…guys?"

He watched as the other two kept laughing to themselves and walked side-by-side ahead of him. They joked playfully, and Ned didn't miss the way MJ's shoulder brushed against Peter's. If he didn't know any better, he would think that they were crushing on one another.  _ "Nah…" _ he thought to himself.

"It is pretty cold out here," MJ commented as she stuck her hands deep into her pockets. "Don't you get cold in that…" she coughed, "…that work uniform of yours?" She nodded her head towards the suit that was now tucked back into his school bag.

"Nope." Peter said easily. "Mr. Stark put a heater in the suit."

"Of course, he did," MJ stated, managing to sound less than impressed.

"I don't really need it when I'm swinging around, though." He added. "But it does come in handy sometimes." He smiled to himself recalling the first time he used it after being dropped in the cold lake.

"Maybe Mr. Stark can make me a jacket with a heater?" Ned remarked. "I'm not sure I can wait for you too long if it gets much colder. What if it snows or something?"

"I doubt May will want me out in the bad weather, Ned" he answered.

They made it back to the apartment and were all relieved to get inside the building where it was warm. They entered the apartment to find May setting the table for four.

"There you are!" May greeted the trio. "Ned, I have the oven on warm. Why don't you stick those in there to warm up a little?"

He did as May suggested, and they all went into Peter's room to put down their belongings and take off their coats.

May loved nights like this. She was so happy that Peter could be 100% himself with his friends. Plus, it helped her to have someone to talk to about Peter's secret.  _ "Well, someone other than Tony Stark," _ she thought. It didn't matter that they were teenagers. MJ especially was wiser than her years.

She smiled upon taking another look at the young girl. She had her hair in a pretty braid today, and May thought her sweater looked new. She couldn't help but wonder if Michelle Jones was trying to get her nephew's attention. She doubted Peter would really notice, though. He seemed less interested in girls or dating lately, especially now that Peter had told her more about Liz and her father.

They all sat down and listened to Peter's stories before the conversation turned towards something that had happened earlier in the day at school. Apparently, that Flash kid got himself into trouble after backing his dad's car into a dumpster.

"He tried blaming it on Spider-Man, but that excuse only worked once, after Homecoming," Peter laughed.

"Hey, I talked to Pepper today," May informed him. The other two knew all about Pepper Potts. Rumors about her wedding with Iron Man were all over the internet.

"It looks like things are set for us to go upstate on the 26th. Happy will be picking us up in the morning around 8:00 A.M."

Peter nodded and smiled. She could tell by his body-language that the 26th couldn't come soon enough. There was something  _ off _ though. "Is that ok?" she asked.

Ned, MJ, and May were all studying him now, and Peter looked up sheepishly.

"It's just…" Peter spoke up. "I have no idea what to get Mr. Stark for Christmas. What do I get the man who already has everything? I know he doesn't expect a gift, but it's just…" he took a breath, "…I feel like I should give him something. You know…to thank him for all that he is doing for me."

The others looked thoughtful. "Maybe try something with more sentimental value?" MJ offered.

"I'm not sure he's the sentimental type," Peter answered. "Plus…I don't think I really have anything."

"Everyone is sentimental," MJ said with complete confidence in her words. "You'll think of something."

The kids helped May clear the table before heading back to Peter's room to finish their homework.

They had to draw angles with protractors for their math homework, but Peter couldn't find his in his backpack. He figured he must have knocked it out when he was changing in the alley. Ned offered for Peter to use his.

"It's cool." Peter said, "I think I have an old one in my desk."

Peter opened the bottom drawer and rummaged around for a while.  _ "I know it's here. It probably just fell to the bottom,"  _ he thought. He pulled out some old drawings from elementary school and set them on top. When he found what he was looking for, he went to replace the pictures.

He stopped the moment he saw one of his drawings peeking out of the pile.  _ "No way!"  _ He thought to himself.  _ "I can't believe I still have this!" _

The drawing was a bust of Iron Man. He completed the picture for an art project after the teacher asked them to draw a figure of someone they admired. Peter had worked hard on this picture. He wasn't an artist, but he put extra effort to get everything just right…especially the arch reactor in the chest. He always found that technology to be particularly interesting. Peter turned it over, and found his messy handwriting on the back with the words,  _ "When I grow up, I want to help people like Iron Man." _

"Dude, did you find it?" Ned asked.

"Yeah!" Peter answered his friend quickly while he placed the drawing back in his desk carefully. He returned to his work with a huge grin on his face.

"Something exciting about math homework?" MJ asked.

"Uh…well, yeah…I love math." Peter answered with a grin.  _ "Actually, I may have just found my gift for Mr. Stark,"  _ he thought. He kept that to himself, though. He didn't think that his friends needed to know that.

Michelle shrugged before turning back to her own paper.

By 8:00 o'clock, MJ and Ned were leaving. This was May's favorite time. The time when she could have Peter to herself before he went off to bed.

"You know, Pepper did say that you could pick a day to invite Ned and MJ upstate." May told him.

Peter looked up at that, and she didn't miss the huge smile on his face, "Really? Why didn't you say something when they were still here?"

"I thought I should tell you first and let you think about it. Maybe you can talk to Tony about what day could be best, especially since Happy will likely need to give them a ride." She smiled to herself imagining the disgruntled look the man would have on his face at picking up a couple of teenagers.

"That would be so cool! They would love that. I could tell them about it as like a Christmas gift or something! I'll talk to Mr. Stark and then talk to them about a day at school tomorrow." Peter walked over and kissed his aunt on the cheek. "Thanks for telling me, May!"

The last thing she heard him (and sometimes saw him) do in the evening was put on his mask and send a video report to Tony through KAREN. She had no doubt that tonight's report would include some ideas about having his friends visit the compound over break.

May smiled before walking over to the door and putting the deadbolt in place. She turned out the lights and looked forward to a good night of sleep ahead.

* * *

It was settled that Peter's friends would take a day to visit the compound on the 29th of December. Tony was actually looking forward to taking the opportunity to meet the famous Ned and MJ. He was impressed with the way Peter's friends looked out for him.  _ "If only I could find more friends like that," _ Tony thought. He tried not to think about Steve Rogers and his betrayal, but the wound was still fresh. He didn't think he would ever forget the image of his parents' brutal murder at the hands of James Buchanan Barnes.

Tony supposed another reason his parents' death was on his mind was due to the fact that the anniversary of their death had just taken place. 26 years later, but their death felt all the more recent due to learning the truth. The accident hadn't been an accident at all. It bothered him that Steve could take the side of the man responsible, brainwashed or not.  _ "He didn't even have the decency to tell me that he knew they were murdered!" _ He often wondered when or how Steve discovered that fact for himself. The man had been frozen for 70 years, and yet he knew the truth before Tony. He supposed he would have to start talking to the man again if he ever wanted to find that out, but he had no intention of making up with the star-spangled knucklehead any time soon. Truthfully, he suspected Nick Fury passed those details along to Cap somewhere along the way.

Tony shook his head as if to shake away those memories. He wanted to think of something more pleasant, like getting ready to see Peter after Christmas. He and Pepper entertained the idea of having them celebrate with them on the holiday, but May and Peter apparently had traditions. They liked to do things similar to how they celebrated the holiday when Ben Parker was alive. It wasn't a problem. He would have Pepper all to himself and that suited him just fine.

He was eager to show Peter the most recent modifications to his web-shooter design. The materials were expensive, so Tony figured that would be the kid's Christmas present.

Unfortunately, he wouldn't be able to spend New Year's Eve with Peter. Tony and Pepper were expected to make an appearance in Times Square. He offered to have Peter and May join them, but Peter made a face and told Tony that he would prefer to stay upstate and watch the ball drop on the TV with May. He smiled as he recalled the story Peter told him. Apparently, Ben took May and a young Peter into Times Square when he was around 8-years-old. Peter pulled a disgusted face and told Tony about a drunk man who urinated on the new sneakers Ben and May had given him for Christmas that year. After that, Peter had no interest in being anywhere near that insanity in Times Square ever again.

He and May would be heading back to Queens on New Year's Day, so Tony only hoped he could be back to the compound in time to bid them farewell.

Today was the 20th of December. He would see Peter in less than a week. He smiled at the thought before going to busy himself and tinker with his armor.

* * *

Peter sat up slowly in bed, scrubbing his hands over his eyes. He sat there for a few moments and allowed his body to become full alert. He glanced out his window to see the wreaths and ribbons decorating the doors and windows all down his street. He smiled,  _ "It's Christmas morning! _ " Peter realized!

He jumped off his bed and stretched. He had spent all of Christmas Eve with Aunt May. They had started a tradition with Uncle Ben where they would go for a walk around the city, taking in the decorations and listening to carolers as they sang the usual Christmas songs. They would stop at a Starbucks where Aunt May would get a Gingerbread Latte and Peter would get the largest cup of hot chocolate that was available. They liked to take their beverages and finish walking around as it got dark. They would judge the lights that were put up on the various homes and businesses before heading home to watch  _ A Miracle on 34th Street _ (the older one that was in black and white) and eat fresh popcorn.

The day before had been perfect, and he was excited about what this day would hold as well. He and May would exchange gifts and then head over to have brunch with Ned and his family. Mrs. Leeds insisted that they come. They would usually just enjoy some toast and jam after opening gifts and head to their favorite Chinese restaurant for an early dinner, another tradition started by Uncle Ben. Peter smiled at the memory. Ben had insisted on going out to eat every Christmas. May had tried to make him a Christmas dinner for their first Christmas after getting married, and she had nearly set the kitchen on fire. He decided that it was much safer to just go out.

Peter pulled on a shirt, sweater, and jeans before combing his hand through the mess of curls on his head. He wouldn't worry too much with his hair until it was time to go to Ned's house. Peter walked over to his desk and grabbed the gift that he bought for May. Next to his aunt's gift was the one that he had ready for Tony. He had put his old drawing in a clear, plastic frame that would allow Tony to see both the front and back. Peter looked at the gift and frowned.

_ "He'll think this is stupid."  _ He thought. _ "I don't know what I was thinking. I'm 15! This picture was drawn by a 10-year-old for a homework assignment! It doesn't even look that nice. Ugh! Why did MJ put it in my head that it should be something sentimental?" _

Peter drummed his fingers on the desk for a minute. He pushed the picture aside and picked up the small white box that contained the gift for his aunt.

Walking out of his bedroom, he found May making toast and setting out some jam. She was wearing a Santa hat and had a huge smile on her face. "Merry Christmas, Peter!" she practically sang the greeting when she saw him.

"Merry Christmas, Aunt May!" he smiled back at her.

He went over and snagged a piece of toast. It was a special cinnamon bread from the bakery a few blocks over, and it was only available this time of year. He liked spreading it full of an apple jam that was made by one of their neighbors.

May's eyes sparkled at him as he took a bite. "Slow down!" She scolded playfully. "We want to try to make that last, you know!"

Before long, they were sitting on the couch with their small artificial tree nearby. Peter and May only ever exchanged one gift. They felt it was irresponsible to spend too much money on numerous gifts, so they opted to try and get one meaningful gift for one another.

"Me first!" Peter proclaimed, handing the small box to May. He was especially proud of his gift for May this year.

May slowly reached forward and took the little white box. Peter didn't bother wrapping it since he wasn't really good at that. Therefore, it didn't take May long to see the PANDORA name on the box. Her eyes went wide, and she looked at Peter in shock. "Oh, Peter! You didn't…" May gasped, "…how did you? I mean…this is too much!"

May didn't even need to open the box to know what was going to be inside. She knew that Peter had seen her gaze longingly at a pair of earrings on display. When Peter asked her about it, she told him they reminded her of the earrings that she wore on her wedding day. The earrings were borrowed from an aunt, and she had to give them back. Yet, she always loved those earrings. Peter had tried to convince her to buy them, but she refused and told him she couldn't justify spending the money.

She opened the box to see the beautiful earrings gleaming back at her. They weren't real diamonds or anything, but that didn't matter. PANDORA jewelry was still out of their price range.

"Peter…" she breathed his name, barely audible. Tears were making their way into her eyes as she looked up at him. "How did you manage this?" she asked with concern in her voice.

Peter gave a small laugh. "It's a little funny, actually," he explained. "As people saw Spider-Man around town, they started offering me money to do tricks or take a selfie with them. At first, I refused, but then I realized that it might be a good way to earn the money that I needed to get those for you. It really didn't take long. I had what I needed in less than a week!" Peter said proudly.

May laughed heartily. "Seriously? Wow…ok. I'll keep that in mind if we're ever behind with our bills in the future."

She held the box in her hands and removed the earrings with care. "Help me put them on?" she asked.

Peter smiled from ear to ear and complied with her request.

"You're beautiful, Aunt May." He complimented her once they were on. "But you don't need the earrings for that," he added.

"Aww, Peter!" May stood and walked to a mirror on the wall. "Gosh! They're perfect!" She returned to the couch and gave Peter a long hug. She pulled away and reached for his gift. "I feel silly. I'm not sure my gift is as nice as yours." She looked embarrassed. "I struggled for a long time about what to get Spider-Man for Christmas. I eventually settled on taking MJ's suggestion for you…something sentimental."

With that she handed him a beautifully wrapped gift (she had no trouble with wrapping). Peter studied her face for a moment and gave her a smile, "I'm sure I'll love it, May."

Peter ripped through the paper and found an expensive-looking frame. The picture inside the frame took his breath away. He had no idea this picture was still around. He recalled the day it was taken:

_ Peter was so excited to hear that the renovations to Stark Tower were complete. It had been torn apart in the attack. His Uncle Ben surprised him by taking him to see the new Avengers Tower together. They couldn't get inside or anything, so they just hung around to see if they could see anything interesting and took a few pictures. Peter was almost 12-years-old at the time. _

_ "Let's take a selfie, Uncle Ben," Peter exclaimed. _

_ "A what?" his uncle asked in confusion. _

_ "You know…a picture that we take together of ourselves. You hold your arm out far enough to get us in frame and snap the picture," Peter explained. _

_ "Sure, kiddo," Ben said. _

_ Ben had brought his small digital camera along. Peter had teased him about cameras becoming obsolete and told his uncle to just get a phone with a nice camera. However, Ben refused to use a phone for anything except phone calls _

_ Peter and Ben stood close together with their backs to the tower. Ben tried to make sure that they were both in the frame with the tower in the background. _

_ "Ready?" Ben asked. _

_ "Ready!" Peter answered. _

_ "1…2…3!" Ben called and pushed the button to take the picture on 3. At about the same time, they heard a sound from the tower behind them. _

_ "It's Iron Man, Uncle Ben! Do you see? There he goes!" Peter shouted with excitement. _

_ "Will you look at that!" Ben said. _

_ Peter thought he was talking about the man taking off into the sky, but Uncle Ben was looking at the preview on the camera. "We caught him in our picture, Peter!" Ben said. "He's just a small spec, but there he is!" _

_ "Really? That's so cool!" Peter said running over to take a look. _

_ "This is awesome, Uncle Ben! We need to go show Aunt May." _

_ "We will" Ben smiled at his nephew. "Let's go." Ben laughed. "You'll have to help me get this off the camera, Peter. I always have trouble with that part." _

_ "Sure!" Peter was staring at the picture as they walked towards the train station. They both had these goofy grins on their faces in the picture, but Peter didn't care. He thought it was the best picture ever! _

Back in the present, Peter held back tears of his own. "I thought Uncle Ben lost this picture file when his laptop broke. I never thought I'd see this again. I love this picture!"

"I found the old camera card," May explained. "Ned helped me get it printed out. It seemed appropriate…it's almost like an omen. Maybe some part of Uncle Ben knew the Avengers would be part of your future."

May looked down at the photo cradled in Peter's lap. "I guess Stark was always lurking in the background," she joked but then grew more serious, "or rather he was there…ready to look out for you."

A tear slid down Peter's cheek. "Thank you so much for this, Aunt May!" He gave her a hug before standing to take the picture over to the table for display. He would treasure it forever.

* * *

The rest of Christmas day had gone by smoothly. Before Peter knew it, Happy had them at the compound upstate and settled into their rooms on the 26th. Peter was thrilled to see Vision, and he was more than a little surprised to see that he looked more like a regular man, except for the yellow stone in his forehead. May seemed a bit more cautious around Vision. She wasn't sure how to behave around something that wasn't exactly human. Vision seemed patient enough with her, though; somehow, he seemed to understand her apprehension.

Tony gave Peter a card to wear around the compound, for the sake of appearances. It identified him as an intern for Stark Industries. May got one as well, and it identified her as an assistant for Pepper. Tony wasn't sure that it was necessary, but he felt the need to be cautious.

On the evening of the 26th, May and Peter had a belated Christmas dinner with Tony and Pepper in their home on the fourth floor. It was no surprise that the food was delicious. Peter had brought his gift for Tony, be he wasn't sure when the right time would be to give it to him. There was even part of him that thought he shouldn't give it to him at all.

Pepper had complimented May on her earrings, and Peter noticed that she beamed while telling Pepper the story behind them.

Tony had told Peter about his web-shooters/gift not long after he arrived that morning. After finishing dessert, he got an idea. He thought it might be best to get Tony alone in order to give him the picture.

"Do you think you could show me those web-shooters now, Mr. Stark?" Peter asked hopefully.

"Now?" Tony asked with surprise. "I don't know…it's getting late. I'd hate to leave the ladies alone to fend for themselves,``he joked.

"Oh please," Pepper scoffed. "You've been dying to show Peter what you did. Go on! May and I will be just fine."

Peter and Tony shared a look, smiled, and quickly made their way to the elevator.

Peter picked up the bag containing his gift for Tony.

"Hurry, kid!" Tony joked. "Let's go before they change their mind!"

Once on the elevator, Tony noticed the bag Peter was carrying. "Whatcha got there?" he asked.

"Oh..erm…uh," he stuttered. "This is just something that I want to show you. I'll-I'll show you in the lab."

The two made their way into the lab, and Tony went straight towards the back table in the corner. He wasted no time pulling up the schematics and started showing the upgrades to Peter.

"See this?" he asked. "They're smaller and more lightweight. I'm thinking we could even modify a watch of some kind so that you can access your webs outside of the suit in case of emergen…" he trailed off as he noticed Peter wasn't really paying attention. He seemed to be fiddling with the bag on his shoulder, deep in thought. "Earth to Pete…" he called. "Expensive new tech…you wanted to see it?" Tony studied him for a moment. "You alright, kid?"

Peter fidgeted some more and gave Tony an embarrassed look. "I don't know what I'm doing, Mr. Stark. I just…it's silly…you're going to think that I'm just a dumb kid," Peter blurted out.

Tony raised his eyebrows and looked confused. He had no idea what the kid was talking about. "You're anything but dumb, Peter," Tony said. "I got the ideas for this from one of your own sketches.

"No…I mean," he let out a breath, "it's not about the web-shooters. I wanted to give you something…away from the others, but now I just think it's stupid!" Peter spit out his words quickly.

"You talking about the thing you wanted to show me? The thing in that bag?" Tony asked. Peter didn't answer, and Tony noticed he had a deep blush on his face. "You're making me nervous, kid. Do I need a drink for this?"

"What?" Peter asked. "No…I don't think…ughh." Peter set the bag on the table and pulled out the clear plastic frame, without fully letting Tony see it yet.

"I found this in my desk at home," Peter explained. "I wanted to give you something…something for Christmas…to say thank you, I guess. I didn't know what to get you, and my friend MJ suggested something sentimental. I found this, and I thought…I thought you might like to see it." Peter put a hand to his head. "It seemed like a good idea at the time, but I think you're just going to think it's stupid. You made these awesome web-shooters, and I have this picture I drew when I was 10."

Peter finally revealed the picture to Tony. He didn't say a word. He just waited and watched Tony's face carefully for his reaction.

Tony took the framed drawing from Peter. He thought for a moment about teasing him and asking if the kid made him a picture for his refrigerator, but he thought better of it when he saw the worried look on Peter's face.

He was surprised to find a decent drawing of the Iron Man armor from the chest up. It looked like the artist put great detail into the helmet and the arc reactor in the chest. It wasn't the best drawing of Iron Man that he'd ever seen, but there was something about it that really touched his heart. The words on the back made a flutter go through Tony's chest, and for a moment he thought there was still some shrapnel trying to make its way into his heart.  _ "When I grow up, I want to help people like Iron Man"  _ was written in a child's handwriting. Then he noticed the artist's name in the corner.

There was a lump in Tony's throat, and he didn't quite understand where it had come from. "You did this?" he asked.

Peter just nodded his head quietly.

Tony coughed to talk over that damn lump, "It's pretty good. Your detail with the arc reactor is especially noteworthy. I'm a little concerned about the sentence on the back, though."

Peter looked at Tony with concern, "You think it's stupid…I knew I should've just left it in the…"

"You misunderstand me, kid." Tony said. "This is…umm…ahem…it's one of the nicest gifts anyone has ever given to me. Kids have drawn pictures and given them to me, but this is from you. Ahem…it-it means a lot." Tony looked Peter in the eye. "I'm just not always sure that I make the best decisions. There are plenty of people that I haven't helped…people I haven't saved." Tony spoke honestly.

"You saved me." Peter said simply.

The silence in the room spoke volumes, and a lot was said in the way the two men looked at one another. There was a respect for one another that passed between them. Neither one really knew what to say exactly.

Tony laid a hand on Peter's shoulder, moved it up to his cheek briefly, and lowered it to the shoulder again with a friendly patting motion. He finally held the hand still on his shoulder and broke the silence, "Ahem…when I grow up…" Tony smiled, "I want to have a heart as big as Peter Parker's."

Peter beamed at his mentor and gave him a sheepish grin.

"Thank you, Peter," Tony said. He cleared his throat and broke the uncomfortable atmosphere in the room by saying, "This is totally going on the fridge!"


	11. Winter Break: Part 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is meant to be taking place during December 2017; therefore, Christmas was a Monday. Peter and May arrived upstate on a Tuesday. I'm going to be referring to the days of the week more in this chapter. You'll find that an unwelcome face appears at the end of the week. Enjoy!

Peter was relieved that he was able to make Tony smile with his gift. Tony's presence in his life was a gift in and of itself to Peter, so he was happy to be able to give him something to show his appreciation.

The next couple of days went by in a blur, like most days that are a part of a vacation. Peter was either fiddling around in the lab, or training in the lower level. Tony spent time training with him on Wednesday, but he and Pepper left for the day on Thursday. Vision was more than happy to train with Peter while Tony was away. Working with Vision, however, was a little frustrating for Peter. With the android's ability to faze, Peter couldn't really hit him with his webbing, it would shoot through him. If nothing else, training with Vision taught Peter to utilize some of his other abilities and strengths and rely less on his webs.

By Thursday night, Peter could hardly contain his excitement since his friends would be visiting the next day. They had told MJ and Ned's parents that Peter's internship with Tony Stark helped him to gain special guest passes to the Avenger Compound for his friends. To make things easier for Happy, MJ's parents were dropping her off at Ned's house. Happy would be picking them up there and bringing them to the compound to meet Peter.

Peter thought about going along with Happy to pick them up, but both May and Tony thought that he should stay back to make the preparations for their visit.

Ned and MJ arrived at the compound a little after 10:30 Friday morning. Peter rushed out front to greet them as Happy pulled in. He saw the look of joy on their faces before they even got out of the car. (Although, Michelle was clearly trying to look unfazed by it all).

"Oh my god, Oh my god, Oh my god!" Ned exclaimed as he got out of the car. "Peter! This is… this is…" he stared at the building and Peter thought he might have seen tears of joy in his friend's eyes. "THIS IS MOST DEFINITELY THE COOLEST THING THAT'S EVER HAPPENED TO ME!"

"Dude…" MJ stared at Ned, "Chill out, we haven't even gone inside yet." She looked around at the security. "If you don't cool it, the hired henchmen will send you home."

Peter laughed, "Hey! Henchmen work for the bad guys. We're the good guys here."

MJ squinted her eyes at Peter and looked around, "Mmm Hmm… Time will tell," she teased.

"Come on inside, guys," Peter motioned for his friends to follow him into the massive building.

"Uhh… you're welcome!" Happy called after the teenagers. They paid him no attention, so he shook his head and sighed, "Ungrateful punks. Maybe they would just like to walk home." Happy slid back in the car and went to park as the teenagers made their way inside.

Ned could barely contain himself. Everyone looked so important and he wished he could talk to people about their job and which Avengers they knew.

Peter didn't spend much time on the first floor. He pointed in a couple of directions and explained what the various rooms were for before ushering them towards the elevator.

"I want to show you the third floor. Aunt May is up there preparing lunch." Seeing his friend’s horrified expressions, he added, "she's not making it. She's just making sure that the food is ordered and we have everything that we need." Ned and MJ visibly relaxed. "I can't wait to show you my room. It's like I have my own apartment. I thought we could hang out there until it is time for…"

He didn't get to finish that sentence because Iron Man himself stepped off the elevator before they got to it.

"Hey, Peter! There you are. I heard your guests arrived, so I thought I should say hello before you kids got too busy." Tony gave a confident smile to his friends.

"Uh, yeah…" Peter said, "Mr. Stark, this is Ned…"

"Hello, Ned," Tony greeted, stepping forward to shake Ned's hand.

Ned's eyes were wide, and his mouth hung open. "You're shaking my hand. You're actually shaking my hand. This is… is… it's so crazy!" Ned looked at MJ and pointed at Tony. "Iron Man just said hello to me! He knows my name!" He turned back to Tony, embarrassed, "I mean…ahem," Ned lowered his voice as it had gone up an octave in excitement, "It's an honor Mr. Iron… Man… um… Iron Man, sir."

"Take it easy… breathe kid… don't hurt yourself," Tony joked.

Peter chuckled at Ned's excitement before looking over to MJ. "…and this is Michelle" Peter introduced. He noticed that she looked amused and her eyes sparkled with something that Peter realized to be excitement.  _ "Huh… I didn't know she could get excited,"  _ he thought.

She took Tony's hand and spoke gracefully, "You can call me MJ. It's nice to meet you, Mr. Stark." And it wouldn't be MJ if she didn't add, "I'm the one who keeps these two losers in line."

Tony liked her. Peter could tell. "I'm glad to hear there is someone to knock some sense into the kid when I'm not around," Tony said, referring to Peter.

"I have to say," Tony added, "I'm glad you two could make it. I'm pleased that Pete felt comfortable sharing his secret with you, and I appreciate how you both have his back." Tony's voice held a genuine gratitude that left Peter feeling truly proud of his friends.

Leave it to Ned to accidentally ruin the moment, "I'm happy to be on Peter's back…" his eyes went wide and he stuttered, "No! I mean… I'm on top…"

Tony's eyebrows shot up and he looked amused.

"…On top of it… things… I mean… If there's a problem, I'm on top of it. I know how to back him up."

"Wow… just, wow. Very smooth, Ned," MJ teased.

Tony looked at Peter, "This is the kid who helped you hack into the suit? Huh… ok" Tony shrugged. "Well, I better let you all get on your way. I know you're only here until 6:00, and I don't want to take all your time. It really was nice meeting you both. If you'll excuse me, Colonel Rhodes is flying in for a meeting shortly and I need to be going."

They all waved their goodbyes, and Peter led his friends onto the elevator. The doors closed, and Ned leaned forward and smacked his head on the wall, "Ugh… that was bad… so bad!"

MJ laughed, "Actually, I thought you did pretty well. I honestly thought that could've gone worse."

Ned glared at her before Peter said, "Don't worry. He likes you guys. I don't think you could say anything to change that. He may like you even more now, actually."

Ned doubted that. He said, "Colonel Rhodes… is that War Machine?"

"Yep." Peter said. "I didn't know he was coming by. I haven't seen him since… well… Germany. I don't know if I'll get a chance to catch him later or not, but it would be nice to see him again."

The elevator opened to their floor, and Peter changed the subject to talk about the space in front of them. May greeted both of his friends with warm hugs. Vision was nowhere to be seen, so Peter assumed he must have gone downstairs to be with Tony and Rhodes. Ned and MJ were amazed by the living quarters on the third floor. It was like seeing the inside of a luxury apartment building.

"Can we see where all the Avengers would live… like their room?" Ned asked.

Peter frowned. "No… I mean, I've never been inside any room other than mine or the one May uses. I was up to Tony's private living space once, but only saw the entertaining space," Peter clarified.

Ned looked a little disappointed but nodded his head in understanding. Peter didn't miss how MJ tried to hide her surprise when Peter talked about visiting Tony's private floor. The three friends made their way to Peter's room where they stayed until it was time for lunch. They were enjoying the Xbox and entertainment system.

When it was time to eat, Peter's friends were blown away. There was a whole taco bar set up with anything they could possibly want. They ate lunch with May, and Peter filled them in on what they could do next. Peter was somewhat restricted as far as areas they could see, but Tony told him that they could see his space on the third floor, the lab, and the training area (but no other area in the lower level). They decided that they would spend time in the lab after lunch before Peter would let them come into the training room with him.

They finished lunch and made their way to the lab where Peter showed off the upgrades to his web shooters. He even let them tinker with it a little. He also showed them the formula for the web fluid, and his friends helped him make a batch. After a couple hours in the lab, Peter asked, "Want to test this fluid out in the training room? I have some of my older web shooters. I'll set up some targets, and you guys can use those to take some shots."

His friends nodded with excitement and they made their way downstairs. The lower level was massive. The space below ground level was larger than what anyone would expect from above. The training area was only a portion of the space. On the side opposite of the training area was a kind of command center that was tucked away for members of the Avengers. From there, the team could easily make their way to either the garage or hangar in order to access appropriate transportation for missions. Peter knew Tony was probably meeting with Rhodes in the command center, so he ushered his friends to the training area quickly so as not to disturb or interrupt anything.

"Woah…this is amazing!" Ned commented as he looked around.

"They actually let you in here?" MJ asked.

Peter smiled. "This is where I will learn to be an Avenger, so yeah… I can use this whenever I want."

Peter grabbed some paper targets and set them up all around the room. He even climbed some walls and put them up higher. He didn't bother putting on his suit, but he did have a newer set of web shooters to try out. His friends had some of the older models. He showed them both the basics of how to shoot the web out, although Ned had already figured it out. After all, it was Ned who helped him at Homecoming.

"So, you guys can shoot the webs, but you need to stay on the ground. It would be too dangerous for you to try to swing up high like I do." Peter said. "You might be able to swing on them a little from the ground, like you would use a rope swing or something." He gave a small laugh, "Just be careful. It might be hard to explain if I send you home with injuries."

MJ shot off a web and hit one of the targets. She smiled proudly, "I think we can handle it."

With that, the friends were firing webs all over the place hitting one target after another. MJ and Ned ran around the floor trying to hit all the different targets. Peter climbed up and around the walls, shooting at the targets with them. He couldn't resist swinging around and showing off a little for them as well. After some time, Peter felt something stick to his shoulder as he was up high, hanging off a wall. He looked down to see that MJ had hit him with a web.

She had a look of triumph and said, "I thought I would try a moving target." She tugged on the webbing and Peter let her pull him back down to the floor. He looked up to see his friends share a look. Peter removed the webbing and once again noticed how they were looking at each other—the look was full of mischief.

"Hey now…" Peter put his hands in the air and backed up. "You guys wouldn't dare!"

"You better run, Spider-Man!" Ned teased.

With that, Peter took off as his friends both tried to capture him with their webs. It was all in good fun, and Peter was having a blast. He started out slow but picked up some speed in order to offer his friends more of a challenge. With his enhanced senses, he dodged most of their attempts. He heard a few comments about how he wasn't being fair but didn't take it seriously since he could hear them laughing.

"Aw, man! I'm empty," he heard Ned say.

Peter stopped and dropped back to the ground. They all looked up to see a mess of webs around the training room. Peter explained that they would dissolve later.

"Where's the bathroom?" Ned asked suddenly, a light blush on his face.

Peter walked his friend over to the side and pointed to a hallway, "It will be on the right," Peter told him.

He watched his friend go around the corner before looking down and examining the web shooters on his wrists and started to take them off.

Suddenly, webbing was stuck to his waist and he realized that MJ hadn't yet run out. He let out a little yelp of surprise as she yanked him in her direction.

"Woah, yeah… you got me," he smiled at her. "Nice shot!"

She pulled him so that he was next to her and smiled. Peter couldn't help but notice just how beautiful she looked when she genuinely smiled.

"This was really fun," she said while tucking some hair behind her ear. "Thanks for today."

He looked up and met her eyes. He went to say something, but he was lost for words. MJ had a look in her eyes that was different than any look he had seen before. Belatedly, he noticed that she still held on to the webbing and was pulling him closer, little by little. He let her pull until their faces were just inches apart.

"MJ…" he breathed softly. So many thoughts were running through his head. "I… umm… we… I…"

"…shut up, Parker," she said, and she moved forward to silence him with her lips.

They didn't quite get the chance. "Man, the bathrooms here are so nice. It's more like a spa or something!" Ned proclaimed as he came back into the room.

Peter had quickly jumped back, and Ned never noticed what had nearly taken place. Peter rubbed the back of his neck and looked over at MJ. To her credit, she recovered fully and was distracting herself by removing the borrowed web shooters.

"So, what's next?" Ned asked.

Peter looked at the clock on the wall. "It's almost 5:00 o'clock already. We better head upstairs and get you guys something to eat before Happy takes you home."

He collected the web shooters from his friends and went over to a locker in the hallway to set them inside. Little did he know that there was someone who had seen exactly what took place between him and Michelle. May had snuck down to the viewing window to watch the friends play together. She quickly started to go back upstairs since she knew they were getting ready to make their way up as well.  _ "I knew she was trying to get his attention,"  _ May thought,  _ "Now I think Peter finally knows it as well." _

On the way upstairs, MJ and Peter stole some awkward glances at one another. Ned was still so excited about everything that he didn't notice. MJ wasn't one to make a fuss, however, and it wasn't long before it was as if nothing happened.

For dinner, they enjoyed some delicious homemade pizza and ice cream as they laughed and talked about their day. The friends soaked up every minute, and Peter noticed that it was actually after 6:00 by the time he led his friends back to the car where Happy was waiting to take them home.

Ned lifted Peter into a friendly and tight bear hug. "Dude! This was so amazing! I hope we can do this again sometime!" Peter smiled and lifted his hand for them to do their secret handshake. Ned gave his friend another smile before getting into the car.

Peter walked over to MJ sheepishly and tucked his hands into his pockets. She spoke first, "This was…" she sighed, "…cool."

Peter gave a smile and a nervous laugh. "It was…" he met her eyes and gave her a cheeky grin, "I guess it could have been cooler though."

She looked towards the car and back at Peter. They had too much of an audience now between Ned and Happy. MJ stepped forward and instead pulled him in for a quick hug. "Call me?" she asked. "When you get back to Queens on Monday?" she clarified as she hopped into the car.

"Yeah…" Peter confirmed. "Of course… I… uh… can't wait… Monday." He stuttered.

Happy was eager to get going, and he started to pull away as soon as the teenagers in the back were settled.

Peter made sure they were safely away and turned to go back in. He got to the top of the steps and found May and Tony standing together, looking at some video that Tony was projecting from his phone.

They were busy talking and failed to see just how close Peter was. "What… you think… a little before 5:00, you said?" Tony asked.

"Right… about… there, stop it there!" May was pointing at the screen.

To Peter's horror, Tony had FRIDAY pull up camera footage from the training room. May and Tony were watching the part where MJ had tried to pull Peter in for a kiss.

"WHAT?! How did you… why are you…" he stuttered out, "That's not for you to see! Erase that!"

Both adults jumped slightly at Peter's approach.

"Oh, hey Pete!" Tony said, "May was just telling me this little story about seeing you with your friends earlier… one friend in particular… I just had to see it for myself."

Peter's jaw was hanging open. He looked at May, confused.

"I'm sorry, Peter," she laughed. "I wanted to see what you guys were doing, and it just so happened that I got to see the best part," she teased.

"Man… just one second more…" Tony whined. "She's good… almost had you, kid." Tony smiled and closed the video before looking up at Peter. "I approve. That girl has skills… we need to work on yours, though," he teased.

"Thanks a lot," Peter whined.

He shook his head as he followed the two grown-ups back inside, both of whom were chuckling as they went through the door.

* * *

The next day, Peter was in a very good mood. He was still feeling the high of spending the previous day with his friends. He loved that he got the chance to share this part of his life with them.

Peter and Tony had each grabbed freshly squeezed juice from the cafeteria on the main level, and they were making their way to the elevator. Peter was planning to spend the day with Tony since he and Pepper would be leaving the next day, and Tony wasn't sure if they would be back in time to say goodbye to Peter and May before they went back to Queens on Monday.

FRIDAY was suddenly speaking to Tony, a warning in her voice, "Sir, Thaddeus Ross just made his way through the gate. He is quickly approaching and asking to speak with you. Security personnel are instructing him to head towards Conference Room 2."

"Shit!" Tony cursed and looked to Peter. "Maybe you should get out of here. Head to the elevator and…"

"…too late," Peter cut in. "He's already at the door and looking in our direction. I think it will be suspicious if I run off in a hurry."

"You're an intern. Follow my lead," Tony said quickly and quietly to Peter before directing his attention to the man approaching. "Secretary Ross! My oh my, what a surprise it is to see you! You shouldn't have come all this way just for little old me!" he quipped.

Ross looked thoroughly annoyed. "Actually, I did need to come here. Especially since you have a bad habit of putting me on hold! I wanted to catch you now before you run off for the holiday. I hear you met with Colonel Rhodes to discuss a certain topic without me. Something you both know that I should be a part of!" He scolded Tony but left out details upon seeing the young man next to him.

"I'm sorry, I didn't know that I needed your approval to talk to my friends." Tony complained. "And what we talk about is really none of your damn business! Now…if you excuse me, I was just about to head to the lab with my intern."

Ross was now paying full attention to Peter, who was trying to play the part of dumb intern. He looked to the tag that Peter had clipped to his front pocket. "Excuse me, Mr… uh… Parker, is it?" Peter nodded and held out his hand.

"It's an honor, sir." He said. Ross gave his hand a quick, impatient shake. The man wasn’t too interested in wasting time on an intern.

However, Ross was curious enough and asked, "You always invite kids to secure facilities like this, Stark?" He examined Peter, "Seems a little young to be here."

"Mr. Parker here is a real genius. Top of his class… no doubt a future at MIT. He makes your old test scores, yes… I have seen your test scores," he said as Ross gave him a look, "he makes you look like… well…" Tony shrugged. "Let's just say I think the kid could probably do your job better."

Ross clenched his jaw tightly shut and looked to Peter, "What is it that Stark makes you do here?"

Peter was nervous, so Tony jumped in, "Nuh uh… you don't get to harass my interns. If you must know, I came across the kid's mad skills when I was a guest judge at a robotics competition at his school," Tony lied easily, "He's helping me perfect the design on Colonel Rhodes' leg braces."

"Mr. Stark has all the best tools and materials here for me to help out," Peter added, proud of just how steady his voice was as he spoke.

Ross nodded, seeming to accept this explanation. "That's all well and good," he shifted impatiently, "but you're going to have to excuse us. Mr. Stark needs to share some important information with me. I understand there is a conference room available for us?" Ross was not going to let Tony get out of this one.

"Kid," Tony turned to Peter, "You can go up to the lab and wait for me there. I'll have FRIDAY let you know when this little meeting is done. It shouldn't take me too long to convince this guy that there's no breaking news for him." Tony glared at Ross, who was glaring right back. "That ok?"

"Uh… Sure, Mr. Stark," Peter confirmed, "I'll go up and get started a while. It was nice to meet you, sir." He said to Ross.

Ross seemed to be locked in a staring contest with Tony and only gave a subtle nod back to Peter.

As Ross and Tony made their way to a conference room, Peter shuffled to the elevator. Once safely in the elevator with the door closed, Peter let out a long, shaky breath. He also noticed that his hands were shaking slightly and closed them into fists. "Oh god…" he thought aloud, "please tell me that worked." Peter's mind worked furiously,  _ "Is Ross asking about Spider-Man? Could they be talking about me?" _

He leaned back against the wall of the elevator. He skipped the floor to the labs, and he instead went straight to the third floor. His aunt looked up at him as he stepped off the elevator.

May took in his pale complexion and closed fists. "Peter? Is everything ok? I thought you were going to be spending time with Tony?" she asked with concern.

"He's here, May…" Peter said to her, his voice stiff and anxious.

"Tony? Isn't he supposed to be here?" May asked, clearly confused.

"No!" Peter said a little too loudly. He noticed Vision came out to see what was going on as well. "I'm not talking about Tony, Aunt May…" Peter had brought his voice back under control.

"Then who? Peter what's wrong?" May tried again.

He looked up at his aunt with concern filling his eyes, "Secretary Ross… Secretary Thaddeus Ross is in the building, and he is talking to Mr. Stark right now."

May brought a hand to her mouth to stifle her gasp.

Peter just hoped their worst fear wasn't about to come true.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Get ready! The action is about to begin.


	12. When It All Comes Apart

Tony was angry. This was not supposed to happen.  _ "How the hell does he have any idea as to what Rhodes and I were talking about?"  _ He thought to himself nervously. As soon as they were secured inside the conference room, Tony went over to the cabinet to pour himself a glass of whiskey, the time of day be damned. Any unexpected meeting with Thaddeus Ross was a reason to have a hard drink in hand. He didn't bother offering Ross a glass. That would be a waste of good whiskey.

Tony stood by the cabinet and glared at Ross from across the room. The man remained standing and leveled Tony with a glare of his own.

Tony spoke first, "So… you going to tell me specifically why you're here? Or are you just going to continue pining for me from across the room?"

"I don't have time for your games, Tony." Ross snapped.

"Funny…" Tony answered, "…I was about to tell you the same thing!"

"Some of my men overheard Rhodes on his phone when he returned back to DC yesterday," Ross gave Tony a look.

Tony took a sip of whiskey, "Overheard? Or they were monitoring his calls?" he asked.

Ross didn't feel the need to clarify. "Apparently Rhodes seemed to be talking to someone about the ability to contact a fugitive. One whose whereabouts you claimed to know nothing about," he accused.

Tony's mind worked quickly,  _ "Is he referring to Spider-Man or…" _

Tony's thoughts were interrupted when Ross finally got to the point, "How long have you had a way to contact Rogers?" Ross demanded.

Tony added more whiskey to his glass before putting the bottle away and making his way over towards Ross.  _ "Thank god,"  _ He thought,  _ "at least this isn't about the kid." _

"I've told you before," Tony began, "I have no intention of going after Captain Traitor. He turned his back on me by protecting his boyfriend!"

"You have the resources to…"

"Nope! I am not wasting my valuable resources on Rogers. We're not on speaking terms, and I'm through with him! Finding Rogers is not in my job description, that's on you," he pointed towards Ross. "Unless he turns into some kind of star-spangled terrorist with his buddy, you can't ask Iron Man to go after him!"

Ross gave Tony an annoyed look and took a step in his direction. "You're avoiding my question, Stark… talking in circles. You didn't answer the real question. I don't care about whether or not you  _ want _ to talk to Rogers. I want to know  _ how _ to talk to him. I know you have a way, and I want it." Ross' tone was deadly serious.

"Is that what you  _ know _ ?" Tony challenged. He lifted his glass and finished the remaining whiskey in one gulp. "Well… I'm sorry, Mr. Secretary, but I'm afraid you were misinformed."

Ross was red in the face and trying to keep his anger in check. It wasn't working too well. "You selfish, arrogant bastard! I should place you under arrest right now!"

"On what grounds?!" Tony demanded. "Eavesdropping on one side of a phone conversation will hardly hold up in court. You can't even come close to taking me down!" Tony got in Ross' face and added, "You never will."

Ross stepped back and shook his head. "You're all talk, Tony. Always putting on a show. Always trying to present a picture of being the good guy… someone the people can trust." Ross growled. "It's bullshit. You signed the Accords as part of your show. You have no intention of cooperating with authorities!" he accused. "You can't be trusted! You're lying about Rogers, and I have no doubt you've lied to me about your knowledge of Spider-Man, too!"

Tony fought to keep his face unreadable for Ross, and he hoped that he was successful. "I will cooperate with the UN authorities. I do not need to cooperate with your agenda," he glared. "Now… you've overstayed your welcome here today. Get the hell out!"

With that, Tony walked over to the door and held it open for Ross and his crew to leave.

Ross stood for a moment and examined Tony. "Ok, Stark," Ross sounded dangerous. He stepped closer to the door and made sure Tony was looking him dead in the eye when he said, "but when the shit hits the fan, just remember…  _ it's your fault _ ." He left those words hang in the air and motioned for his men to follow. Ross didn't feel the need to bring up his other news. He had an Ace up his sleeve, and he intended to use it.

Tony watched Ross leave. He wanted to be sure the man was gone for good before he made his way back to Peter.  _ "What the hell just happened?" _ he thought.

* * *

Peter was trying to distract himself upstairs. May and Vision were sitting with him in front of the TV in the lounge area.

Nothing on the TV was helping and he kept flipping through the channels:

**ABC NEWS ANCHOR: "Today we're going to be talking to some representatives from the U.N. about possible changes to the Sokovia Accords…"**

_ CLICK _

**HISTORY CHANNEL: "During the war, James Buchanan "Bucky" Barnes was believed to have been killed in action. Captain Steve Rogers mourned…"**

_ CLICK _

**CELEBRITY NEWS SHOW: "Tony Stark is expected to make an appearance at Times Square tomorrow with his fiancé, Pepper Potts. Some people are hoping that we may have "Tony Stark's New Year's Rockin' Eve" someday in the near future…"**

_ CLICK _

**A RE-RUN OF LAW AND ORDER:** **_A prison door slides closed with an audible crash. The prisoner looks forlorn and yells something about being innocent._ **

_ AUNT MAY GRABS THE REMOTE AND TURNS OFF THE TV. _

"That's not helping," she said.

Peter didn't say anything. He was staring at the blank screen in front of him. Time was moving so slowly that he felt like the first 37 minutes at the DODC Vault went by faster.

"You seem distressed, young Peter," Vision commented. "There is no need to fret. Mr. Stark will tell you what he can."

"Ugh! I just hate this waiting part!" Peter whined. Suddenly, he had an idea. "FRIDAY, can you show us the feed of what's happening in the conference room with Ross?" Peter asked hopefully.

"I'm sorry, Peter, but you do not have access to that feed," FRIDAY replied.

"What?!" Peter was annoyed. "Why not?"

"Mr. Stark has given you limited access. You cannot access anything that puts you unnecessarily at risk. It's called the BABY GATE protocol," the AI explained.

"Are you kidding me?" Peter exclaimed, throwing his hands in the air. "Ugh! Of course, it is!" He stood up and began to pace.

May and Vision shared a look.

"You are not yet an Avenger, young Peter. You cannot expect to have full privileges at this time," Vision stated simply.

"But you do!" Peter stood up and stared at Vision. "You can ask FRIDAY for the live feed! Please, Vision, I need to know what's happening! Maybe I should be getting Aunt May out of here! It may not be safe!"

"Peter…" May cut into his rambling. She looked towards Vision, "I don't think it's a good idea," she said.

"I am in agreement with you, Mrs. Parker," Vision replied. "It is best we wait for Mr. Stark."

They only had to wait a couple more minutes before the elevator opened and Tony himself stepped into the room.

"I thought I told you to wait in the lab? What if Ross demanded to go up and see what we were working on?" Tony snapped at Peter as he came forward.

Peter looked guilty. "I'm sorry. I didn't think you were serious." He looked thoughtful, "Would it be a good idea to let Ross see the labs? Wouldn't he see the Spider-Man projects?" Peter asked.

"Of course it would be a bad idea to take Ross there… that's not the point," Tony complained. "I didn't know where you were at first! I thought maybe you ran off or something… at least until FRIDAY told me you were up here," he admitted.

"Tony…" May warned, "You need to tell us what is going on! We've been worried."

Tony rubbed a hand over his face before making his way over to the kitchen counter and leaning against it. He looked up at the three other people in the room. "Everything is fine," he said, "for now," he added.

"May we inquire as to the nature of your meeting?" Vision asked. "Young Peter and his aunt have been waiting anxiously."

Tony sighed and gave Vision a look, but he decided that they deserved some explanation. "Yesterday, Rhodey and I talked about Steve Rogers. Rhodes wanted to discuss whether or not we should try to contact Steve and give him any updates about what we're trying to accomplish with amendments to the Accords. I told Rhodey that Cap is a big boy and can get information on his own," Tony spat out. "Somehow, Ross overheard Rhodes talking to someone later on the phone… I'll have to find out who it was, but I suspect he was talking to Pepper. Those two are always working together to discuss my health and well-being or something!" He rolled his eyes, "Anyway…someone informed Ross that Rhodey was talking about the ability to contact Rogers. Naturally, Ross thought he needed to get in my face and demand that I tell him how he might be able to reach out to Grandpa Steve for himself," Tony explained.

"So, this wasn't about Peter at all?" May asked hopefully.

Peter collapsed on a nearby chair in relief.

"Well…" Tony began. May noticed that Tony looked a bit anxious, and Peter sat up in his seat.

"Well? What?" May prompted.

Tony stepped forward and pushed his hands into his pockets. He sighed and answered, "Ross believes that I am lying about my knowledge of Steve Rogers; therefore, he felt the need to accuse me of also lying about my knowledge of Spider-Man," Tony admitted.

Peter threw his head back in frustration and closed his eyes, "Shit!" he said. Mostly to himself, but the others heard him.

"Yeah…" Tony agreed. "The good news is that I don't think he gave my intern a second thought. He hasn't connected those dots yet, kid. That's a good thing."

Peter opened his eyes to look at Tony. Tony met his gaze and added, "Good job, Mr. Parker. We dodged a bullet…" he said, "at least for now."

May went and sat down near Peter. Vision was standing off to the side and quietly absorbing the information.

"I think…" Peter started and began to stand up. "I think I need to be alone. I'm going to go to my room for a while," he stated.

Tony looked disappointed. "I was hoping we could go to the lab… get our minds on something else?" he offered.

"Maybe later…" Peter said. "…I'm sorry, Mr. Stark. I just need to be alone." He walked towards his room, but turned back to add, "Maybe we can catch up in the training room later? I think I'd like to work off some anxiety this afternoon."

"Sure, kid," Tony said, "I can agree to that."

Peter went into his room, leaving the other three to stand in the lounge.

"He's worried," May said to Tony. "So am I. This was too close."

"I know," Tony said. "I need to call Rhodes and Pepper. Maybe I can fill you in more later. I'll see if Pepper's able to meet us all for dinner."

With that, Tony made his way to the elevator. May and Vision watched him go.

"I fear things may take a turn," Vision stated.

She sighed, "Let's hope it's not a turn for the worse."

Vision didn't answer, but she could tell that he didn't think things were going to be better.

* * *

The rest of the time at the compound went by quickly. Peter and Tony were able to spend time together before the group had dinner that evening. Tony and Pepper left Sunday morning for the city. Peter and May spent the day together before watching the ball drop on TV. They laughed at Tony's antics whenever the camera panned to show him and Pepper in Times Square. Vision joined Peter and May to watch the ball drop, but he didn't seem overly interested in the show. They were all distracted by Ross's appearance the day before.

Tony and Pepper made it back in time on Monday morning to bid farewell to May and Peter. They had a late breakfast together, and Pepper talked about throwing a party for Peter's birthday during his visit for spring break. She wanted to distract him and give him something to look forward to.

Midtown Tech always had a long break. This year, their break was from March 17 through March 27. Peter's 16th birthday fell on Thursday, March 22nd. They decided that MJ and Ned could come up for a party at the compound that day. Peter would go back with them that evening, and May would have another party back in Queens for him on Friday. Peter would be allowed to invite more friends to that party. They would determine the location for the second party later.

By the time Happy was ready to take them home, Peter was back to being more upbeat. He gave both Pepper and Tony a hug before joining May in the car to head home. Peter would return to school the next day, and he was eager to give MJ a call when they returned. He would call Ned, too. He just had some unfinished business with Michelle. He smiled to himself as they pulled away.

Pepper and Tony watched them leave.

"You okay?" Pepper asked Tony when they pulled away.

"I'll be fine," Tony responded. "I just can't shake this feeling that our plans for his next break will be interrupted." He looked at Pepper. "Ross is up to something, Pep. I can feel it. I just wish I knew what it was."

* * *

Time again moved by quickly. Peter settled back into his school routine. He and MJ were officially a couple now. At first, Ned was annoyed, but Peter and MJ weren't going overboard with any public displays of affection. Therefore, things didn't feel too different, and Ned was grateful. Life was comfortable. They continued to help Peter with his patrols after school. Everything seemed to be perfectly fine. They didn't need to worry about Thaddeus Ross.

Or so they thought.

* * *

It was the end of February when Ross was finally able to arrange a private meeting with Adrian Toomes, the Ace up his sleeve. During his investigation into Spider-Man, his men heard rumors about the man avoiding some of the other inmates, especially those who believed that he knew the identity of Spider-Man. Ross wanted to question the man for himself, but he needed to do it under-the-radar. He didn't want Stark or anyone else to know that he would be questioning the man known as  _ the Vulture _ . It took some time to work with the officials at the prison to keep his visit off the books.

When Ross made his way into the private interrogation room, he found Toomes handcuffed to the table in front of him. Ross sat down and met the man's eyes from across the table.

Toomes wasn't an idiot. He recognized the man sitting across from him. "Well, well, well…" Toomes began, "Secretary Thaddeus Ross… to what do I owe this honor? It's not every day that I get a visit from an important man such as yourself," he said. He spoke with arrogance and he seemed bored. Ross noticed the man acted as if he had better things to do with his time, and he wondered how prison could possibly be more interesting.

"Adrian Toomes," Ross stated, "also known as 'The Vulture.'" Ross rolled his eyes a little, "you all need a special name these days, don't you?"

Toomes just shrugged his shoulders and continued to look bored.

"I'm going to get right to the point, Mr. Toomes. I'm a very busy man," Ross gave Toomes a pointed glare from across the table.

"I'm not going anywhere," Toomes motioned towards the cuffs, "I'm all ears."

"I want whatever information you have on Spider-Man," Ross demanded. "He got involved in with the Avengers in Germany, and he caused trouble when he went after you on that plane. He needs to be held accountable, and I want to know who he is!"

Toomes laughed, "Just look for the guy running around in red and blue tights! What do you need me for?" he asked.

"I hear…" Ross leaned forward on the table, "…that you know who he is. I want the name."

"You're wasting your time, Mr. Secretary. I don't know who he is," Toomes replied smugly.

_ "Bullshit,"  _ Ross thought. "If that's how you want to do this, Mr. Toomes," Ross nodded to one of his men in the corner. "Wade, if you please…"

Wade was a big, military-looking man that stepped forward. Toomes craned his neck to look behind him, and he flinched when he saw the man with something in his hand.

"Woah, woah…hey! Wait a minute!" Toomes protested. It was no use. A second later, a needle was plunged into Toomes' neck. Wade nodded at Ross and stepped back. "What the  _ hell _ was that?" Toomes demanded.

"Something to help you give me the truth," Ross explained calmly. "I told you… I am a busy man. I want answers, and you  _ are  _ going to tell me what you know."

"Truth serum?!" Toomes yelled. "You bastard! You gave me truth serum?" Toomes shook his head back and forth rapidly, as if he could rid his system of the contents that were now moving through his veins. "Shit!" he cried.

"Listen to me, Vulture," Ross began. "You made your living on taking things that didn't belong to you. I believe you have some information that belongs to me now. Who. Is. Spider-Man?" he emphasized his last words.

Toomes was breathing heavily, clearly trying to fight the drugs in his system. "He's mine!" he said, "That little web-slinger is supposed to be mine!"

"So, you do know him?" Ross clarified. "I want a name."

"The little prick took my daughter to homecoming! He was in my car! I should've known sooner. He was so strange back at the house," Toomes laughed and was clearly more disoriented, "I chalked it up to him being some nervous nerd who was afraid of his girlfriend's dad."

Ross looked confused.  _ "What the hell is he rambling on about?" _ He looked towards Wade who just shrugged. "His name… what is his NAME?" Ross was practically yelling now.

Toomes looked like he was fighting a battle within himself. Sweat was beading on his forehead. "Agh! PARKER!" He finally answered, "The little shit's name is Peter Parker! He went to Midtown Tech with my daughter… he lives in Queens." Toomes admitted, breathing heavily.

"Parker?" Ross furrowed his brows and looked over to Wade. "Why the hell does that sound familiar?" he asked.

Wade was pulling up information on his phone. "I got his school picture, boss," he said. "What do you know? It sounds familiar because you met him already, sir…"

Wade handed the phone with Peter's picture to Ross. Upon seeing the image, Ross clenched his jaw and his nostrils flared in anger.

"…isn't that the kid we met when you went to see Stark?" Wade asked.

"SON-OF-A-BITCH!" Ross yelled. He stood up so fast that he knocked over the chair he'd been sitting on. "It's the damn intern! I should have known!" Ross stared back at the picture. "He's just a kid! How is this even possible?!" He looked back at Toomes.

"I don't have a clue. I dropped a building on the little bastard, and he still got up and came after me!" Toomes whined.

"What do you wanna do about it, boss?" Wade asked.

A wicked smile pulled across Ross's face. "Oh… I know exactly what we are going to do!" He nodded his head back towards Toomes.

"Take care of him, Wade," he said. "We have a lot to do." With that, Ross made his way out of the room.

Adrian Toomes never even saw the second syringe before Wade plunged it into his neck.

* * *

Ned, MJ, and Peter were having dinner with May at the apartment. Tonight, they brought home some Chinese food, and they were eager to dig in. With spring break a few weeks away, their homework load increased. They were planning to spend the night studying together for a History exam.

Suddenly, May stopped and stared at the TV that was muted in the background. "Oh my god," she whispered, stepping forward to unmute it and listen to the story that was playing on the news.

The teenagers turned to see what she was looking at, and their jaws dropped open.

"Oh no…" MJ gasped.

"Can't be…" Ned commented.

Peter looked sad, "Poor Liz… turn it up, Aunt May."

**NEWS REPORTER: "Earlier this morning, Adrian Toomes (AKA "The Vulture") was found dead in his prison cell. While his death is still under investigation, officials believe that Toomes killed himself. He was found hanging from his bunk with what the guards believed to be his bed sheets. There does not appear to be any foul play involved…"**

"I can't watch anymore," Aunt May said as she quickly turned the TV off. "We don't need to see that." She shook her head. "That poor family."

The teenagers were quiet. There just wasn't anymore that needed to be said.

_ "I guess I don't have to worry about him revealing my secret,"  _ Peter thought.  _ "I just hope he didn't kill himself because of me… I would never be able to live with that. Poor Liz!" _

Peter never seemed to think about himself. If he had, he might have realized that this was his chance to speak up and tell Aunt May that Toomes had known his secret. Perhaps May would have helped him realize that there was something fishy about Toomes killing himself, especially when the man had wanted so desperately to get back to his family.

By the time Peter would realize his mistake, it would be too late.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Uh oh! There it is. Don't forget to share your thoughts and review! Please and thank you!


	13. Crumbling to Pieces

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> There is a very subtle nod to Deadpool with some characters in this chapter. Trigger warning for increased violence in this chapter, but nothing too graphic.

Spring break was finally approaching, and Tony was so excited to see the kid. He was eager to help him celebrate his 16th birthday. Sometimes it was easy to forget that Peter was so young. Tony continued to be impressed by the way Peter was growing and learning as Spider-Man. The kid was capable of amazing things, and he used his power only to help people. He could've done more for himself with his abilities, but Peter's mind was always on others and looking out for their needs above his own. Peter was supposed to be learning from Tony, but Tony was the one who was learning from Peter. The relationship between Peter and May was incredible; it was proof that family doesn't end with blood. It was a good thing, too, because the only people in Tony's life that could be considered family were not blood relatives. Not that Tony didn't want blood relatives, and that was probably why he had dreams about starting a family with Pepper. They were getting older, and Tony didn't want to waste anymore time. He supposed he would just need to find the right time to talk to Pepper about it. In the meantime, he would try to practice fatherly skills with the Spider-Kid.

The only issue Tony had currently was the gift that he agreed to help May get for Peter's birthday. The gift was not Tony's style, like at all! He recalled the conversation that he had with May:

_ "Tony, it's very important to me that we stay practical. You offered to help, and I really do appreciate that. However, that does not mean you get to tell me which car to buy!" May argued. "Don't forget… Peter and I will be sharing this car for a while. Having two cars isn't practical for us right now. When Peter is ready to go to college, then we can talk about an upgrade. For now, he and I will share the new Toyota Prius. It will replace my old car, and we can use it to drive here so that Happy doesn't have to pick us up all the time! It has great gas mileage, and the size is perfect for navigating through the city!" May tried very hard to make Tony understand her point of view. _

_ "But a Prius?" Tony whined. "We can't get the kid a nice Audi? They have models with good gas mileage, too, you know!" _

_ "Tony we can't have some fancy car sitting outside of our apartment in Queens. It will draw too much attention, and it will probably be stolen after the first night we have it home!" May exclaimed. _

_ "Not if I put in the security system," Tony said seriously. _

_ May just blinked at him. "Ok…" she sighed, "How about a compromise? I will get the nicest and newest model with all the bells and whistles, then I'll bring it here where you can add whatever you want! A nice stark-installed security system would be nice. A new Prius could still attract a lot of attention in our neighborhood!" _

_ Tony hesitated and looked doubtful. "You're sure about this? You think the kid will like it?" _

_ "Absolutely!" May said, "He is excited to get a chance to drive the car I have now. He thinks he can bring that up here, but it hardly survived that one trip! He'll be happy to have a new Prius, Tony, I promise." _

_ Tony sighed again, "Fine!" he agreed, "Get the kid the Prius, but bring it right here as soon as you have it! I'm going to have to get to work on that thing right away." _

_ "Deal," May agreed. They even shook hands on it. _

Tony smiled at the memory. He supposed that May was right about getting something more practical. He offered to help them afford two vehicles, but May didn't see that as a necessity. She explained that she had no problem using public transportation if Peter was using the car.

It didn't matter. Tony already decided he would buy the kid a nice Audi as a graduation present someday, he just didn't tell May.

The current plan was for May to visit her friend Marie that lived near Albany the day before Peter's spring break began. Marie's husband had a car dealership, so he was helping May with the details. She would drive up and exchange cars there. Then, she would drive the new car to the compound, join Peter, and let Tony do his thing with the car. It would be great. May had already told Peter about visiting her friend, and Peter was happy that his aunt felt comfortable going away.

As far as getting the kid upstate, they planned to have Happy pick him up at the apartment when he was done with school.

The plan was set and perfectly flawless. What could possibly go wrong?

* * *

After getting the information that he needed from Toomes, Ross and his men began keeping an eye on Midtown Tech. His men watched Peter Parker come and go every day, and they studied his patterns. The kid was careful. He would leave with a couple friends, and one would always stand watch somewhere as Parker changed into his Spider-Man gear. It also appeared that his friends would retrieve his belongings and return them later. Ross figured that Stark must have warned him to be more careful.

The thought of Tony Stark made his blood boil. The man was infuriating! He acted as if he was superior to Ross!  _ "I'll show him who is in charge!" _ Ross thought to himself as he read the reports of Parker's recent activity. They would need to make their move very carefully if things were going to work out the way Ross wanted.

More recently, Ross's people were able to obtain Parker's phone records. He could tell that Parker and Stark tried to keep the communication professional, like something an intern might communicate to his boss. There were also some long breaks between phone communication, and Ross figured that they probably had a secondary form of communication.

As Ross studied the text messages and call transcripts, however, he could read between the lines. Stark cared about this kid. Add in Stark's persistence with not telling Ross the truth about Spider-Man, and it was clear—Tony cared about Parker a lot. This was something that Ross could use. He could kill two birds with one stone, as long as everything went according to plan.

It wasn't long before he learned that Parker would be going upstate while his school was closed for break. They had also seen a text between Peter and Happy Hogan indicating that the latter planned to pick him up at his apartment in Queens.

Ross called Wade into the room. He finally knew exactly how they would set their plan in motion, but he would need Wade's help.

* * *

On the last day of school before break, Peter could hardly contain his excitement. Aunt May had left to go see her friend, but she was going to be meeting him upstate the next day. Happy was going to pick him up at the apartment so that he could grab the things he had packed.

Spring break was going to be a blast. He was so excited to spend his 16th birthday at the Avengers compound. Everyone closest to Peter Parker/Spider-Man would be there: Aunt May, MJ, Ned, Tony, Pepper, Vision, Happy, and even Colonel Rhodes was planning to be there. Most of the details of that party were a surprise, but Peter was really just excited to have those closest to him there to celebrate. That evening, Aunt May was going to drive Peter, MJ, and Ned back to Queens. His friends were going to sleep over and help him set-up for a bigger party with some other kids from school. Ned's mom offered to host, and they were doing a Star Wars themed costume party. Mr. Stark even helped set up some kind of virtual reality space experience for him and his friends. It was going to be great!

The only problem was that, in all the excitement, Peter had forgotten to charge his phone. He didn't have a way to charge it at school, so he figured he could just charge it on the way.

Peter was in his last class of the day when there was a knock on the door. His Spanish teacher opened it to find the school secretary with a message.

"I have a pick-up notice for one of your students," she informed the teacher and then was on her way.

The teacher looked at the note before saying, "Mr. Parker, this seems to be for you."

Peter took the message. It was a form indicating that he was to be picked up at school. The message line read, "Mr. Hogan delayed. Your ride for your internship will be picking you up after school. Black Sedan."

At first, Peter wondered why they didn't just call him, but then he remembered that his phone was dead. It was too bad. He would have liked to text Happy and make sure he was ok. Peter was a little worried about being able to get the stuff he packed, but he supposed he could have the driver stop by the apartment on the way.

All in all, he wasn't too worried. It wouldn't be the first time that someone else needed to give him a ride. He decided he would plug his phone into the car to charge and check with Happy on the way to the apartment to get his stuff.

As the bell rang signaling the end of the day, Peter and his classmates gave a small cheer. They were all ready to begin their break. Peter bid farewell to Ned before taking a little more time with MJ. They found a quiet spot where they could have a little privacy and shared a sweet kiss before parting ways. Saying goodbye to his best friends wasn't easy, but he knew he would get to see them again.

Exiting the school, Peter recognized the standard black sedan that was a signature for Stark Industries. He noticed that there was one guy at the driver's seat and a second was waiting for him by the back door to open it for him. The man wore a suit typical of Mr. Stark's security detail and he greeted Peter with a warm smile as he approached.

"Good Afternoon, Mr. Parker," the man said, "My name is Wilson. Mr. Hogan sends his apologies for being delayed, but I promise we'll take good care of you."

"Cool. Thanks, Wilson." Peter stated as he got into the car. Wilson followed him into the back and sat down to Peter's left. It reminded him of the time when Happy had driven him and Mr. Stark back to Queens after the incident in Germany.

"That's Wade in the driver's seat," Wilson stated. Peter noticed that Wilson seemed to be in a much better mood than Wade. He figured the driver wasn't too happy about chauffeuring a teenager upstate.

Despite the other man's mood, Peter sent him a pleasant greeting, "Hey, man! Thanks for driving, Wade. I can’t wait to get back upstate!" Then he added, "We are going to stop at the apartment, right? I was supposed to be able to grab my things."

Wilson answered for him as they pulled away from the curb, "Oh! Absolutely… it was just closer for us to pick you up here. Isn't that right, Wade?"

"Mmm Hmm," the other man grunted from the driver's seat.

"Ok, great… yeah… thanks." Peter said. For some reason, Peter was starting to feel  _ off  _ about this situation. He wondered if maybe his spidey sense was trying to tell him something. "Umm… do you mind if I use this port to charge my phone? It died earlier, and I didn't get a chance to charge it. I'd like to make sure Happy is ok."

"Please do!" Wilson said cheerfully. "As a matter of fact, I'll give you a hand."

Peter thought that Wilson was perhaps a little too friendly but figured maybe he was just trying really hard to impress Mr. Stark. Peter opened his backpack and retrieved his phone and charger. He handed Wilson the charger, and he plugged it into the port behind the center console. "Here," he said, handing Wilson the phone. "I'm just going to close my bag… thanks."

"My pleasure," Wilson said.

To Peter's horror, instead of connecting the phone to the charger, Wilson opened up the window and quickly threw the phone out as the car continued to move.

"What the hell, man!" Peter protested. "Why would you do that?" Now he was really getting worried. He also belatedly noticed that they had missed the turn to go to the apartment. "What's going on?"

"I'm sorry,  _ Spider-Man _ ," Wade spoke from the front, "but I'm afraid you won't be going to see Mr. Stark today. By the order of Secretary Thaddeus Ross, you are to be taken to a secure facility where you will be detained for an undetermined amount of time."

"Wait, what?!" Peter couldn't believe this. He should have known this wasn't right. This wasn't happening. His heartbeat rapidly picked up speed, "You have the wrong guy! I'm just a high school kid," he tried. Peter debated about whether or not to fight them. If he did, there would be no denying that he was, in fact, Spider-Man. 

"Really?" Wilson asked from next to him. Peter noticed he was now pointing some kind of weapon at him. Oddly, the man kept up his friendly demeanor. "Come on, kid. You think that we didn't do our homework on you? We were nice enough not to make a big scene and arrest you in front of your friends." Wilson motioned towards Peter's backpack. "You need to give me your bag, Parker. I'm going to need to deactivate the tracker that is no doubt in that suit of yours."

Peter clutched his bag and gave the man a defiant look. "I don't know what you're talking about. I only have schoolwork in here. You won't find a suit." 

"I would cooperate, kid," Wade spoke up again. "That taser in his hands is extra powerful. It won't feel so good if he has to use that on you."

"You _NEED_ to cooperate with us, Parker," Wilson was talking again, "Make it easier on yourself."

Peter was starting to find it hard to breath. This was _ insane _ ! Were they going to take him to that prison Tony mentioned? He didn't want to be locked away! This wasn't supposed to happen. He started to weigh his options, and he thought about ripping off the car door and making a run for it with his enhanced abil…

He didn't get to finish that thought. His time was clearly up once the taser was pushed, none too gently, into his side.

The jolt of electricity set every nerve in his body on fire, and Peter immediately let go of his bag. As it fell to the floor, Wilson removed the taser. Everything happened so fast, only a few seconds went by, but Peter was already fighting to stay conscious and catch his breath.

"You should have just given it to me, kid," Wilson explained as he picked up Peter's bag.

In no time, Wilson was pulling Peter's Spider-Man suit from his backpack. "We have the wrong guy, huh?" he teased.

Peter was clutching his side and staring at the man next to him.  _ "This isn't real. This isn't real. This isn't real,"  _ he told himself.

"And don't try to make an excuse for this suit being in your bag. I know I have the right guy, anyone else would be unconscious or dead already," He looked at Peter a moment before using the taser once again.

"STO…" was all Peter could get out. The pain was intense. He couldn't speak. He couldn't even scream as his body spasmed from the electricity. Again, Wilson hadn't used it very long. He clearly just wanted to make sure that Peter was incapacitated.

It worked.

Peter still fought to stay conscious, but the sweat was pouring down his face and his breathing was shallow and fast. He slumped down in the seat, holding his side. He tried putting as much distance between himself and the other man as possible. Peter's head was pounding, but he was able to see what Wilson was doing. The man took out a laptop and another smaller device. The smaller device was used to detect the tracker and anything else that could be used to let Tony know where he was.

Before long, Wilson was ripping something from the suit, hacking in, and deactivating the various protocols. The man was good. He even managed to deactivate KAREN.

Wilson threw the suit to the floor before directing his attention back to Peter.

"Still awake?" he asked, clearly impressed.

"…ere… y.u…tak..n…me?" Peter sputtered, hating how weak his voice sounded.

"That's for us to know," Wade said from the front.

"…and for you to NOT find out," Wilson added, "Nighty night little spider!" With that Wilson pressed the taser to the Peter once again. This time he didn't take it away until he knew that Peter was truly out.

The last thought Peter had was,  _ "May is gonna be pissed!" _

"He's out!" Wilson called to Wade.

"Good. I'm going to give him a call," the driver answered. Ringing could be heard throughout the car as the call went out on the car's Bluetooth.

Ross's voice was heard picking up on the other end,  _ "Yes?" _ he answered.

"We have Spider-Man, sir," Wade informed me. "We're on our way to meet you now."

_ "Very good!" _ Ross sounded thrilled,  _ "I'll meet you at the airstrip!" _

"We'll be there in about 30 minutes or so, sir," Wade confirmed.

_ "Excellent, make sure he remains subdued. Don't underestimate that kid! I can't lose him now!"  _ Ross insisted.

"Don't worry, boss," Wilson called from the back seat. "We got the spider in our web now, and he's not going anywhere."

Wade ended the call. Wilson kept the taser in his hand, ready to use it again if necessary. He looked at the kid, however, and figured that Peter wouldn’t be a problem. It seemed he would be out for some time.

* * *

Happy was confused. It was almost 3:30; the kid should have been back to the apartment by now. He was also getting worried because the calls kept going to voicemail. Either the kid's phone was dead, or something was very wrong.

Happy was about to call Tony when he had another idea.

He groaned and hit another number in his contacts list.

The phone only rang once before an excited voice picked up on the other end,  _ "Mr. Happy?" _ Ned answered with enthusiasm.

Happy rolled his eyes, "Yeah, kid, this is Happy Hogan…"

Ned cut him off.  _ "Mr. Happy! It's so cool you actually called! I didn't think you'd even keep my number when I gave it to you after Christmas! What's going on? Do I get to come upstate early? I guess you aren't delayed anymore! I'd love to get a ride if…" _

"Hold on!" Happy interrupted. "Delayed? What? Is Peter still with you?"

For the first time, Ned was silent on the other end of the phone.  _ "Uh…no," _ Ned's voice was confused and held some worry.  _ "He got a message at school. Someone called the office and said you were delayed. Someone else picked him up and…" _

"What the HELL?" Happy yelled into the phone. "Why would he go with someone else? Shit! I gotta call Tony, kid. Let me… maybe I'll call you back!"

Without listening for another response from Peter's friend, Happy ended the call and quickly rang Tony's number.

_ "This cannot be good!"  _ Happy thought.

* * *

"Hey, Hap!" Tony answered cheerfully. "You and the kid on your way?"

Tony was back at the compound setting up some more things for Peter's party the following Thursday. There were some things he wanted to finish before Peter arrived. He was also expecting to hear from May soon. He wanted to make sure that she didn't have any problem with the car or the money he sent to help her pay for it.

_ "Tony…"  _ Happy's voice sounded very worried through the phone, and that immediately made Tony feel worried.

"Happy?" Tony asked, "Are you and Pete alright?"

_ "I'm fine… I was here at the apartment waiting for the kid. He was late, and I called his friend… that Ned kid,"  _ Happy explained.  _ "Tony, someone called the school and told Peter that he was being picked up there… that I was delayed or some BULLSHIT like that!" _

Tony listened to his trusted head of security on the phone as he quickly filled him in. Tony wasn't sure he was following, or he hoped that he was misunderstanding what Happy was saying.

"What are you saying?" he asked. He needed clarification. He had to know for sure. He needed to know that he was understanding exactly what was going on.

And why in the hell was his chest feeling so tight all of a sudden?

_ "He's gone, Tony. Someone else has Peter,"  _ Happy explained, his voice filled with regret.  _ "I'm sorry,"  _ he added.

Tony couldn't breathe. The room was spinning.  _ "Someone else has Peter."  _ That's what Happy said. "Oh God…" Tony said aloud. He turned his attention back to the phone, "Get back here as soon as you can. I'll call you if I find anything." Tony didn't even wait to hear Happy's response. He ended the call and immediately tried to track down his favorite kid.

Tony had a bad feeling about who that "someone else" was with Peter, and he desperately hoped that he was wrong.

* * *

The black sedan pulled into the private airstrip where Ross was waiting not far from a large military-looking helicopter.

The car came to stop, and Ross approached, a spring in his step.

Wade and Wilson exited the car. Wilson left his door open for Ross to look inside as he approached.

"Shh… the baby's sleeping," Wilson joked.

Ross glanced inside to see an unconscious Peter Parker slumped in the back seat. The kid looked pale and a little clammy, but otherwise was unharmed. Ross smiled.

"The intern… huh…" Ross scoffed and shook his head, looking between the other two men. "He doesn't look like an enhanced individual to me."

"Trust us, boss," Wade said. "The kid doesn't look like much, but Wilson had to use a lot of juice from that taser to put him out. A normal man would be dead right now."

"No doubt," Ross commented. "Get him out of there," he ordered.

Wilson reached into the backseat and pulled Peter out, none too gently. Poor Peter's head connected with the roof of the car on the way out, causing him to stir.

Wade and Wilson each grabbed an arm and held Peter in front of Ross, who noticed Peter trying to regain consciousness. Slowly, the young man peeled his eyes open and set unfocused eyes on Ross.

"I don't know if you can understand me right now, son," Ross teased and lowered his head so that his face was inches away from Peter's own. "…but there's been a change of plans. We've arranged some special accommodations for you."

Peter's eyes regained some focus. To their surprise, Peter was aware enough that he tried to fight the men holding him with a decent amount of strength. "Argh…" Peter groaned as he tried to summon any strength he could.

Ross motioned to another man near the chopper. "Bring the restraints!" He called.

The man quickly brought over thick cuffs that looked nothing like normal prison restraints. He also brought a collar over. Ross picked up the collar first.

"This will keep you in line," Ross stated as he approached. He noticed that Wilson and Wade were beginning to strain against the kid, so he placed the collar around Peter's neck quickly.

Peter yelped as it snapped into place. It wasn't overly tight, but it was definitely uncomfortable. As Peter regained focus, he noticed that the collar didn't really seem to have any impact on his strength. He was about to give a fierce tug to pull himself free when he suddenly felt a strange pulse coming from the device on his neck. The pain he felt from it was different from the taser and made Peter feel waves of intense discomfort pulse through his body. Peter crashed down to his knees and reached his hands towards his neck, breathing heavily.  _ "What the hell was that?!"  _ Peter thought.

Ross knelt down in front of Peter, holding a remote in his hands. "Tsk, tsk, tsk," Ross scolded. "You'll need to be more careful, Mr. Parker. Or do you prefer Spider-Man?"

Peter lifted his eyes and gave Ross as fierce of a look as he could muster. At this moment, he wanted to be as bold as his Spider-Man persona. He would not let Ross see his fear. (Even though he was undoubtedly afraid).

Ross ignored the look and continued, "That device on your neck… it's not so different from the one we needed to use on Maximoff when she was in custody. This remote…" he held out the remote for Peter to see, "…can be used to activate that collar. If you thought the first pulse was painful, you'll want to cooperate. The next one will be worse."

Peter gulped.

"Place the cuffs on him. You can keep his hands in the front," Ross instructed. Once the restraints were in place, the man returned to the helicopter, making the blades spin as the helicopter started with a shrill whine. "Wade, you'll come with me," Ross motioned towards a smaller helicopter a little further away. "Wilson, you stay with our guest here." Ross gave Wilson the remote. "Make sure he stays comfortable."

Wilson smiled and took the remote.

With his hands secured in front of him, Peter stumbled as Wilson came around behind him and pulled him up.

Peter resisted the urge to groan at the pain in his knees. He was terrified, but if he didn't have his physical strength then he would muster up any mental strength that was left to glare at Ross with hatred.

"Nothing to say?" Ross asked Peter.

Oh, Peter had something to say alright. "F**K YOU!" Peter yelled. (He was a little glad Aunt May wasn't there to hear him).

Ross didn't respond, he merely gave Wilson a look over Peter's shoulder.

Before Peter could register what was about to happen, another intense pulse shuddered through his body. Peter fell to the ground with a loud groan of pain. The pulse made it feel like an earthquake was sending tremors through his bones and shifting his organs. Peter felt sick, dizzy, and disoriented. When black spots filled his vision, he didn't fight it. Instead, he welcomed the darkness. 

Wade stepped forward with a phone and snapped a picture of Peter on the ground before helping Wilson drag him to the waiting helicopter.

Ross watched with a satisfied smile as Peter was placed securely on board.

Wade returned to Ross's side, and the two stood and watched as the helicopter lifted into the air.

"I thought the picture might help us prove our point," Wade smirked. "If not, we can always get Wilson to give us a live show."

The smile on Ross's face grew wider. "Come... Let's go give Stark a visit."

With that, the two men made their way towards the smaller helicopter, where a few more men were waiting to take them to the compound. Ross wanted to see the look on Stark's face in person, especially when he realized that he was helpless to save the kid.

* * *

Tony had quickly made his way down to the command center. He was frantically trying to trace Peter or find some sign of where he was.

Before long, Pepper stepped out of the elevator.

"Tony," she began, her face full of concern. "Happy called me and told me what was going on. He's making his way back now. I came to see how you're doing. Did you find anything?"

She noticed that Tony looked pale. The wrinkles in his forehead revealed his intense concentration and worry as he worked.

"Nothing! There's nothing here, Pep!" Tony yelled.

"I called Rhodes," she said. "He's coming as soon as he can."

"How can there be nothing?" Tony asked frantically, ignoring the bit about Rhodes. Pepper was still pretty sure that he heard her. "I put everything in his suit. I should at least be able to find that, but nothing! No phone. No KAREN. NO PETER!"

"Tony…" Pepper tried.

"I called the school!" Tony continued, "The message they gave Peter was about a black sedan. I tried getting into the traffic cameras outside the school!" Tony looked up at Pepper. "You know what I found? NOTHING! The cameras outside the school were apparently experiencing some technical glitch around the time the school let out!"

"No!" Pepper commented.

"There's nothing to go on here! I expanded out to the closest cameras around the school. Do you know how many black sedans are driving around the city?" Tony asked, his voice strained, "Too many! I have FRIDAY trying to freeze frames of black sedans that  _ might _ fit the time frame. We're trying to scan for any face recognition, but there is NOTHING. What the hell am I supposed to do? That kid was my responsibility!"

"Oh, Tony…" Pepper said.

Tony's voice cracked, "I lost him!"

Pepper tried to offer him comfort. "We'll figure this out. He didn't just disappear."

Tony looked at her. His face turned angry, but it wasn't meant to be directed at her.

"Oh, I know he didn't disappear! This has  _ ROSS _ written all over it! Somehow he found out… he had to… that's the only thing that makes sense…" his face turned to one of horror. "He'd take him to THE RAFT, Pepper. Indefinitely. No trial. I need to try to get to Peter before that happens, Pepper. There's no way Ross would let me get anywhere near that thing once Peter's on board."

"Tony…" Pepper said seriously, "We need to call May. She needs to know what's going on!"

Tony paused, a strange look fell across his face. It held a mix of fear, guilt, anger, and sadness. "Not yet," he finally said. "We need to know for sure. Pete wouldn't want us to worry her until there's something more definitive to tell."

"Ok…" Pepper reluctantly agreed. "But we need to let her know as soon as possible. The longer we wait, the harder it's going to be for her. He's the only one she has left." Pepper said the last part barely above a whisper.

FRIDAY's voice filled the room, "Sir… there's a helicopter approaching the compound," she said.

"Rhodes?" Tony asked, confirming that he had heard Pepper earlier.

"No, sir," FRIDAY informed. "It appears Secretary Ross is on board."

"What the hell?" Tony looked at Pepper.

"Do you think he has Peter with him?" She asked hopefully.

"Doubtful. That son-of-a-bitch probably came to gloat." Tony said as he walked towards the elevator. He intended to be there when Ross landed on the helipad. He looked at Pepper and activated a gauntlet on his hand. "I'll kill him before he gets the chance."

"Tony, wait!" Pepper called, "I'm coming with you! You're not facing that man alone!"

Tony didn't protest, and Pepper was glad. She would need to stop him from killing Ross before they could even get any answers.

As the helicopter landed, Ross wasn't surprised to see Tony storming in his direction, Pepper Potts close behind. The helicopter powered down and Ross and Wade stepped out with two other men.

Pepper had grabbed a hold of Tony and held him back in order to let the others step forward, further away from the helicopter that was still shutting down.

"Stark!" Ross greeted, "You didn't need to meet me out here. I was coming to you."

Tony raised his hand and let the gauntlet roar to life. "You have some explaining to do, Ross!" Tony threatened.

Wade stepped in front of Ross, reaching for a gun at his side.

"Gentlemen!" Ross scolded. "Let's be civilized, shall we?"

"Tony…" Pepper got Tony's attention and nodded towards the other armed men. Instead of trying to reason with Tony about being outnumbered, she tried a different approach. "…We need information. We need to know what he knows."

"Inside…" Tony said simply.

They all made their way into the building, and Tony led them into the nearest empty room. He and Pepper stood side-by-side and turned towards Ross and his men.

Ross spoke first. "You have a lot of nerve telling me that I'm the one who has some explaining to do," he told Tony.

"What?!" Tony asked, clearly in no mood to beat around the bush.

"It's the damnedest thing, Stark." Ross began, "I finally was able to find someone to give me the identity of Spider-Man, and it turns out to be the same kid working as  _ your _ intern. Coincidence?" Ross asked, "I think not!"

"Who told it was Peter?" Tony demanded. "He's just a kid! You have the wrong guy!" he tried. He knew it probably wouldn't work, though.

Ross shook his head and laughed. He ignored the demand to know who told him Peter's identity. "He is a kid, but he is definitely the right man… if the suit and enhanced abilities are any indication."

Pepper had to hold Tony in place. "We need to know more," she whispered as he fought to attack Ross.

"You would have been proud, Tony," Ross added. "The kid put up one hell of a fight, which was amazing considering the high intensity taser that was used to subdue him in the first place!"

Now, Tony was beyond angry. "So… you want to arrest someone? Arrest me!" he yelled.

"And take you to him?" Ross teased. "No… I don't think I'll do that, Stark."

"Where is he now?" Tony asked, "I need to know he's ok."

"I imagine he's still in transit," Ross said. He gave a sinister smile to Tony before adding, "he should arrive at the RAFT shortly."

"NO!" Tony cried as he raised his gauntlet at Ross again.

This time Wade stepped forward, his phone with the picture of Peter out in front of him. "I wouldn't!" he warned.

Tony froze at the sight of Peter in the picture. He heard Pepper stifle a gasp behind him.

"What the  _ HELL _ did you do?" he demanded of Ross. He saw that Peter looked unconscious, and there was a collar around his neck similar to one Wanda was forced to wear when she was detained on the RAFT.

"That device around his neck gives off a debilitating pulse," Ross explained. "Too much could probably prove fatal for Mr. Parker," Ross teased.

"You try attacking Ross again, and I send word to put Spider-Man in a world of pain," Wade threatened.

Tony and Pepper were speechless. How could they be so cruel to a  _ kid _ ? Especially Peter… he was so innocent.

"He doesn't deserve this," Tony said aloud. "He doesn't belong there, Ross." Tony was begging now. He couldn't let this happen. "Please… this is my fault! I pulled him into this. I needed his help with Rogers! He wanted to impress me when he went after Toomes! Can't you see? The kid wants to do the right thing. Just… give him the chance to sign," Tony continued. "He only hesitated to sign because he wanted to stay a kid, keep his privacy. He wasn't ready for the attention, Ross! Please!" Tony's voice was a loud, desperate whisper. "Please, Thaddeus. Let. Him. Go. Let him come  _ home." _

Ross studied Tony carefully before taking a step in his direction and asking, "You want him back?"

Tony didn't answer. Ross knew the answer. The answer was written all over Tony's face.

"You care about him that much, Stark?" Ross was even closer now.

"I'd do anything for that kid. You can lock me away if you want." Tony confirmed.

"Anything?" Ross asked again.

"Yes!" Tony's voice was louder now. Pepper held onto his arm tightly, her face full of concern.

"Ok…" Ross said. "Tell me how to reach Steve Rogers and the others."

_ "Well SHIT!"  _ Tony thought.  _ "That might be the one thing I can't do." _

"I…" Tony began. "Ross… I… it's not that easy!"

"Why not?" Ross demanded.

"It's… I need some time… time to think… I…" he looked back up at Ross. The bastard was smiling as if he'd already won.

"You have 24 hours, Stark." Ross said. "I'll be back by this time tomorrow. For Peter's sake," Ross emphasized, "I would make your decision quickly."

"You hurt him anymore and I swear…"

"I'll be in touch!" Ross interrupted as he turned to exit the room with his men.

"We'll send you more pictures!" Wade added with a nasty wink.

Tony clenched his jaw shut, and Pepper remained silent by his side. They slowly followed Ross and his men back out towards the helipad.

They watched helplessly as Ross left them to stand there, no closer to getting Peter back.

"Oh god…" Tony said as he watched the helicopter pull away.

Pepper looked at him, seeing the fear on his face.

"…I have to call May," he said.


	14. The Raft

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I really do love Peter, so don't hate me. I just think sometimes characters need to hit rock bottom so that they can realize their full strength. Enjoy!

May was tired. She had spent way more time than she expected learning how to use all the different features in the new car. Marie's husband had been patient with her, and he took the time to show her how it all worked.

May coughed a little. She was afraid that she was getting a cold. She was driving the car back to Marie's house. She was spending the night there before heading to the compound tomorrow. She only hoped a good night's sleep would help her to feel better.  _ "I can't get sick now!"  _ She thought,  _ "I've been looking forward to this for weeks!" _

She noticed a shopping center with a pharmacy, and she thought it might be a good idea to stop. She figured it wouldn't hurt to load up on vitamins and purchase some cold medicine just to be on the safe side. She sniffed and thought she might need a nighttime medicine with decongestant. She was definitely going to need that if she hoped to sleep well.

She didn't take long in the store. She knew Marie would expect her back at the house soon. May started the car and was about to put the car in drive when a ringing sound was suddenly filling the small space.

"Shit!" she cursed, jumping at the sound. She looked towards the phone that had been setup to work with the car. She fumbled around a little before she remembered which button to push to answer the call.

"HELLO!" she shouted from the driver's seat, forgetting that it wasn't necessary to yell.

**_"May…"_** She heard Tony's voice through the speaker.

"Oh, hey Tony!" She cut in, realizing that she should have called him earlier. "…Sorry! I meant to call you. I have the car. This thing has everything, Tony! I was seriously out of my league, but Joe… Marie's husband… he helped me figure it out! I'm actually using the Bluetooth thingy to talk to you now…"

**_"May…"_** Tony tried again.

"Peter is going to love this thing, Tony… I promise you! I know you're skeptical, but this is great! I decided to go with a silver color, red or blue as just a little too on the nose," she rambled.

**_"MAY!"_ ** Tony called to her, frustration and urgency in his tone.

She recognized the intensity in his voice this time. "What?" she asked.

**_"Are you driving right now?"_ ** Tony asked. He sounded worried, and May could feel goosebumps rising on her arms.

"Umm…no," She told him, looking towards the drug store. "I needed to make a stop. I'm in a parking lot right now, and I was about to head back to Marie's. What's… Is something wrong? Did Peter make it to the compound ok?

There was silence for a moment.

_ "Oh no… this can't be good!" _ she thought.

Tony's voice finally spoke again,  **_"May, I want you to stay where you are. I've tracked your car and I can see where you are. I'm sending someone to come get you… Happy will be there."_ **

May's breathing picked up. He hadn't answered her question about Peter. "Tony… what's going on?! You didn't answer my question! Is… is Peter alright?"

It was quiet again… too quiet.

**_"I'm sending a chopper, May. It will be faster. For the love of god, do NOT go with anyone unless you see Happy!"_ ** Tony instructed.

"What the hell?" May asked. "A chopper? Tony…" She was growing frantic now because something was definitely wrong. "WHAT THE HELL IS HAPPENING? WHERE IS PETER? WHY AREN'T YOU ANSWERING MY QUESTIONS?" She screamed the last questions into the speaker. He needed to be clearer, damn it!

**_"May…"_** Tony said, his voice clearly distressed. _"Please… let's talk when you get here."_

"WHAT THE F**K IS HAPPENING WITH MY KID?" she yelled, slamming her hands down on the steering wheel in frustration. Her head hurt. She really didn't feel well. Although, now she wasn't sure if it was the stress or illness.

She heard Tony sigh. **_"I'm sorry, May,"_** he said.

_ "Oh shit!"  _ She thought. Those words sounded too much like the words from that police officer when Ben was killed. The officer had come to her door, telling her something about a man with a gun and Ben. Finally, he had just looked at her and said,  _ "I'm sorry, Mrs. Parker." _ Tony's apology now was too similar. She had to know…

"Is he… is he alive?" fear dripped through her voice as she asked the question. She was already holding back tears.

**_"I… he should be fine,"_** Tony responded.

May breathed a sigh of relief, until she thought more about what he said. She didn't think his answer made much sense.

"He  _ should _ be?" she asked, completely confused. "What aren't you telling me?"

She heard Tony sigh again, perhaps he even growled in frustration.  **_"Damn it, May! I wanted to talk about this in person!"_ ** Tony sounded exhausted.

"TALK ABOUT WHAT? Please… I'm listening… I'm not going anywhere…" She was pleading with him now. "I don't need all the details, but PLEASE tell me something!"

It seemed like a long time passed before he answered, but in reality, it was only a few seconds.

**_"He's with Ross, May,"_** Tony sounded defeated.

It scared May more than she would like to admit. He wasn't supposed to sound defeated. She would need him in order to survive this because  _ SHIT!  _ This was really bad!

May was speechless. There were no words. She just cried.

Tony must have heard her because the next thing he said was,  **_"Don't cry, May. Happy is on his way. We're going to figure this out. Ok? May? Please just say something… I need to know you're still with me."_ **

"I'm with you," she said weakly, her voice quiet.

**_"Ok. It won't take long for the chopper to get there. Someone else will take care of the car. I'll tell you what I can as soon as you're here."_** Tony was trying to sound calm. She could tell he wanted to be calm for her.

"Yeah, ok," She answered.

**_"We'll talk later. Stay in the car until you see Happy!"_** With that, the call ended. Tony's voice was gone.

Peter was gone.

May was alone… very much alone.

Happy was coming. She thought it was odd that Tony emphasized that she was supposed to be sure that Happy was there. She thought there was probably a reason for that and assumed she'd find out later.

She quickly sent a text to Marie, telling her that something came up and she couldn't stay. She noticed her hands were shaking.

The world around May seemed to move in slow motion. She could hear her own heartbeat, moving in rhythm with the pounding in her head. She breathed heavily. She clutched her hands to the steering wheel, and she lowered her head to rest on top of them.

She let herself cry. She stayed that way until she heard the sound of a helicopter landing in an empty area of the parking lot and saw Happy running in her direction.

* * *

Tony was in the command center. Rhodes had arrived, and Vision was there now. Pepper filled them in as Tony was breaking the news to May.

It was awful. He hated to tell her over the phone, but he realized that he couldn't make her wait.

He knew Happy would fill her in on the flight to the compound. Happy felt so guilty. There was barely enough time for Happy to apologize to Tony upon his arrival. Tony didn't have time to listen. He just sent Happy with a pilot to bring May back and tell her what was going on. He would let her know how Ross had managed to take Peter into custody. Tony would find a way to fill her in on the rest later.

Time was already passing so quickly. Tony was determined that he could find a solution before Ross returned. Surely, he could get Peter back with the help of Rhodes and Vision in the next 24 hours. He wouldn't need to get Rogers or the others involved. Ross wasn't going to win!

"Incoming message from Secretary Ross," FRIDAY spoke suddenly.

A message blinked on a nearby screen. It looked like a video message. Tony looked at Pepper, Rhodes, and Vision. They simply returned his look. No one moved.

"We should watch it," Rhodes stated.

With a shaky hand, Tony reached forward and opened the message. Below the video was written, "Just a little update for you. Something to help you think about giving me the information I need. -TR"

Tony clicked the video. It expanded and projected in front of the four people in the room. It was a video of Peter. Tony could tell he was in a cell on the raft. He recognized the horizontal bars and cold surroundings. Peter was even dressed in the same blue prison scrubs that the others had worn.

"Oh no," Pepper gasped out.

[The video zoomed in closer to Peter. Ross hadn't wasted any time securing him in a cell, and Peter still had the collar around his neck. Peter looked to be sleeping, but they all knew that he was more likely to be unconscious.]

"God, kid…" Tony whispered to the video as if Peter could hear him. "I'm so sorry."

[The video showed Peter as he began to stir and regain consciousness. They watched as Peter slowly blinked his eyes open and turned his head to take in his surroundings. Their hearts ached as they watched him sit up suddenly, looking scared as he realized he was locked in a cell.]

"Young Parker is afraid," Vision stated simply, vocalizing what they were all thinking.

[Peter looked down at himself, grabbing at the prison clothes. They realized the video had audio when they heard the kid speak.  _ "What the HELL! No… no… no…!" _ Peter walked over towards the bars of the cell, likely looking out for any guards.  _ "HEY!"  _ he called.  _ "This isn't right! Is there someone out there? I don't belong here!" _ Peter began to pace around the cell. They watched as he stepped forward to try to pull on different things, looking to see if anything would give way to his strength.]

Tony shook his head. From what he could tell, Peter looked pale and weaker than usual. He probably needed food. And forced unconsciousness probably hadn't helped the kid either.

[They watched as Peter started to climb the wall, moving closer to a vent. He was probably hoping he could pull it loose. To their horror, Peter suddenly let out a yell and reached towards his neck. He fell off the wall and slammed to the floor on his back. They heard him gasp for breath as the air had been knocked from his lungs. Someone had activated the collar upon seeing Peter on the wall.]

"Oh, Peter…" Pepper had tears running down her face.

[The camera zoomed in on Peter fighting to catch his breath and curling up in a protective ball on the floor.  _ "Please…"  _ he spoke again,  _ "Please… somebody… just let me go home!" _ ]

The video stopped. No doubt Ross cut it off there on purpose. Those last words were like daggers to Tony's heart. He would do anything to get Peter home. He just had to think about the best way to do it, and he wasn't convinced that giving up Rogers was the best way. Ross wasn't likely to let Peter go that easily.

The room was silent as everyone was trying to gather their thoughts.

"We can't let May see this," Tony finally said to the others. "It'll be too much…"

"What will?" May's voice entered the room. Happy had brought her down to talk to Tony. "What can't I see, Tony?"

Tony quickly closed the message with the video.

"Was that Peter?" May asked. "Is he ok? Why can't I see it? What's going on?"

"You should have let me know you were here, Happy," he glared at the man, "I would have met you both upstairs. May…" he looked at her, "I'm sorry, but you can't be down here."

"The hell I can't!" She snapped. "Peter is my responsibility! I have a right to be a part of this!"

Tony noticed that she looked very pale, her eyes were beyond tired, and her voice sounded hoarse. He took her by the elbow and led her towards the elevator.

"I've thought a lot about this, May," Tony said. "I will fill you in on everything that you  _ need _ to know, but I don't think it's good for you to be here while things are happening. This is Avengers business."

The others were silent, not sure if they agreed. They watched as May pulled herself free outside of the elevator and glared at Tony.

"Do you want to get hit again?" she asked. "That's my kid! Avengers business? What the HELL are you talking about? What Avengers? I see two of them here with you, Tony! Who do you think you are? You called me here, and now you want to send me away?" She sounded hurt and confused.

"I'm not sending you away, May!" Tony defended, "I just don't think you need to know exactly what Ross is up to." May was about to protest again, but Tony asked, "What was the ONE THING that Peter worried about?" Tony asked her.

"What?" May wasn't expecting that question.

"The one thing… ONE THING…" Tony's voice grew louder. "Don't you remember? He only wanted you to know the things that you needed to know. He wants you SAFE!" Tony lowered his voice and talked quickly, trying to get her to understand. "I owe him this, May. I couldn't protect him, but I can still protect you! Ross hasn't involved you yet! If he sees you here, it could be trouble!"

May just looked confused.

"He's right," Rhodes spoke up and approached them. "The information that comes into this room. The conversations that we have here could be too much information, Mrs. Parker. I know it's hard, but I think Tony is right."

"But…I…" May stopped. She was too exhausted, and this was all too much for her to handle.

Pepper came forward. "Maybe Tony's right. Please trust us, May. How about I take you upstairs? I know what's going on. We'll sit down, and I'll tell you what I know." Pepper looked to Tony to make sure that sounded reasonable. Tony nodded to her, knowing Pepper would know what to say and what to hold back.

"Promise me…" May said, looking at Tony. "Promise me that you'll tell me the truth. I can't handle any more lies."

Tony nodded his head. "No lies… I promise. I just can't let you see or hear anything that would give Ross a reason to target you. I will keep you safe. Peter would want me to keep you safe."

"Ok… I'll go upstairs with Pepper. But first…" May looked determined, and yet very tired. "…I want to know what you were looking at. It was Peter, wasn't it? Please… Tony, let me see him. I need to know that he's ok."

_ "He's not ok,"  _ Tony thought. He looked at her before pulling out his phone to access the message there. "It was a video, May," Tony told her honestly, "…A video of Peter on the raft. It's hard to watch, and I don't think you  _ need _ to see the whole thing. It may not be safe for me to show you that place, but I will select a frame so that you can see him."

May nodded.

Tony selected the moment when Peter was standing up and looking around, he didn't look too bad in that one. He enlarged the image for May to see.

May brought a hand to her mouth to hold back her cry upon seeing Peter. She brought a hand to her own neck when she noticed the collar on Peter. "Oh Peter…what did they...?" She looked at Tony, "What is that?"

He knew what she was asking about. He thought for a moment. He wanted to give her an honest answer, containing only what she needed to know. "It's how they control enhanced individuals like him," he said finally.

"Oh my god," she gasped and looked at the image again. "At least he's alive." She looked at Pepper. "I think you're right. I'd like to go upstairs now. I don't think I'm feeling well, and I would like to go sit down."

Pepper nodded and led her to the elevator. Happy followed them, wanting to help May.

Tony watched them go. May really hadn't looked well, and he wondered if he made a mistake by bringing her back so soon. He also wondered if he would ever do right by the kid. He couldn't seem to keep Peter or May in good health. He felt like a failure. He felt like he was letting everyone down.

* * *

This was a nightmare. Peter was in a living nightmare.

He was totally freaking out. He hated to admit it, but he knew that he was, in fact, very much afraid. He was also determined to keep his fear to himself.

Besides the fear, Peter felt a surge of anger bubbling deep within him. He didn't deserve this. He didn't deserve to be taken away so cruelly. He hadn't hurt anyone, so they had no right to bring him here and hurt him.

He absently rubbed at the collar on his neck. The pulses from the stupid thing were incredibly painful. Peter thought the taser had been bad. The pulse, however, made it feel like his insides could be vaporized. The waves of energy that moved inside of him made it seem like his organs would collide and burst.

Peter shuddered at the thought. He preferred to keep his insides intact.

Another thing about this place that Peter hated, was the quiet. It was so damn quiet. If he thought that the DODC vault was bad, this was a trillion times worse. He was so bored. The boredom and loneliness seemed like enough to kill him. With his enhanced senses, the silence only put him on edge, and he strained to hear something… anything to tell him more about this horrible place.

Peter closed his eyes and listened carefully. There were distant footsteps and muffled voices. He focused some more, trying to hear words, but there was something else drowning out the voices. Peter frowned at the sounds… it was like white noise. No… it was more like water lapping its way onto the shore. Water! Waves! Peter’s eyes flew open,  _ “Oh my God! How did I forget? This place is a floating prison! I’m in the middle of the ocean!”  _

The sudden realization dialed his senses beyond eleven. It was like he was suddenly feeling everything at once. The clothes itched on his skin. The lights burned his eyes. Peter backed up against the wall and shrunk down to the floor, holding his hands over his eyes. The collar on his neck suddenly made him feel like he was choking. 

His breathing was fast and shallow, setting him in the direction of a full blown panic attack. 

_ “Calm down, Spider-Man. Focus! Breathe!”  _ Peter scolded himself. He focused on his breathing, desperately trying to take deeper breaths. Slowly, his senses dialed back down. After what seemed like an eternity, his breathing returned to normal and the same silence as before enveloped him once again.

This prison was absolute hell. There was nothing to do or see. They wouldn't even let him climb the walls without activating the damn collar. He could only pace, sit, and sleep. Those seemed to be his only options!

And eating? They hadn't even brought him food yet, which was a serious problem. He needed to eat something soon, or he would probably pass out. Not that these guys would care. They seemed to like it when Peter was unconscious.

Any guards that were around apparently weren’t interested in paying him any attention. Well, there was Wilson. Wilson had appeared once after he woke up. The man stood outside of his cell, smirking at him and waving. There was something seriously wrong with the man. His smile was more like a mask, something to cover up a more sadistic side. Peter had also seen the man still holding his backpack, with the deactivated Spider-Man suit dangling out from the open zipper. Peter had scowled at the man and shot him the finger as the psycho disappeared through a door. 

Peter wasn’t sure how long he was sitting there lost in his misery before he finally saw someone approaching him with a tray.

_ "Finally!" _ he thought, relieved to get some nourishment. Or he was relieved, at least until the man shoved the tray through a slot on the floor. "Seriously? That's it?!" he said aloud, mostly to himself. "One piece of bread and a small bowl of broth? Oh… how nice! I got a small cup of water, too!"

Peter looked up to see that there was no one there anymore, and he was definitely talking to himself. He shrugged his shoulders and reached for the food. He really was hungry, so he would eat the meager meal gladly.

It didn't take long to finish it, and Peter pushed the tray away.

There was a toilet and sink beyond a tiny privacy wall. He would hold off on using that for as long as possible.

Peter finally settled on resting on the uncomfortable slab that was meant to be a bed. He was bored, there was nothing to do, and the stress did make him tired.

He supposed it would be nice to get some rest without it being forced on him.

As he settled in and tried to find a comfortable position, his thoughts swirling through his mind as he started to doze off.

If these people wanted Spider-Man, then Spider-Man is who they were going to get… in all his fury!

* * *

Tony and Rhodes had worked through the night, with Vision helping as much as possible. They tried to find dirt on Ross, and they even toyed with some ideas on how to get even. They wondered if they should try to get some leverage of their own, take something or someone important to Ross.

Ultimately, they knew that wasn't an option. They would not stoop to Ross's level.

"We need to be better, gather evidence against him in this," Rhodes said. "I have connections in Washington. Ross will try to play this off as making a criminal arrest, but I think we could find something to use against him. We could prove that he should not be the one here calling the shots. People will see him as the criminal, not the enhanced persons he arrests."

Tony sighed, "I hope you're right, but it doesn't help us right now! We've been up all night, skipped breakfast…"

"We should eat something for lunch, Tony. We can't help Peter if we aren't taking care of ourselves," Rhodes commented.

Tony looked over at the clock. Lunch? How did the time go by so quickly? How were they no closer to finding a solution? "Tell me again why you and I can't fly there with Vision? We could take that place so easily!" Tony exclaimed.

"Wouldn't Ross just love that," Rhodes said. "He'd probably have cameras ready to capture the whole thing. Then he'd have reason to lock us away for good, along with Peter. He could do whatever he wanted to us at that prison, make us give up Steve and the others."

Tony blinked, "I'm surprised he  _ hasn't  _ done that."

"He can't, Tony," Rhodes explained. "No one would let him get away with detaining us since we signed the Accords. It's easier for him to control us this way, unfortunately."

"Yeah…" Tony said, sitting down and rubbing a hand over his tired face. "…It's unfortunate for Peter. He doesn't deserve to be used like this. He's not a bargaining chip. This wouldn't have happened if I had kept the kid at a distance."

"Tony, don't do that!" Rhodes protested. "Peter could still be locked away right now, even if he had never met you. His relationship with you… it's probably giving him some hope. He knows that we'll find a way to get him out of there."

"Will we?" Tony asked, standing up to look at his friend. "Do we have a way to get him out?"

Rhodes was quiet and looked towards Vision was listening quietly from across the room. "I think you need to consider calling Steve," he said.

"What?" Tony asked. "No… that's not an option."

"I do not understand," Vision finally spoke. "Does not the Captain have the most knowledge on how to break into that prison?"

"I don't get it either," Rhodes added. "I thought you were angry with Steve. Why protect him?"

Tony shook his head, "It's not about protecting  _ him _ . He can be locked away in that hell hole with that serial killer friend of his for all I care."

Tony put his hands on his hips and looked at Vision and Rhodes. "Peter has taught me to think of others, not just myself. If I were thinking of myself here, I would hand that information over to Ross in a heartbeat. Maybe then I would feel some sense of justice for what was done to my parents… what Rogers knew was done to my parents!"

Vision and Rhodes stared at Tony, saying nothing.

"You didn't see them in that place," Tony added sadly. "Wanda, Sam, Clint, that other guy…"

"Scott Lang…" Vision offered.

"…Sure him!" Tony said. "They didn't deserve to be placed on that thing. It wasn't right. How can I give Ross information that could put them right back there?" He shrugged. "Sure Clint and… uh… Scott made a deal. They're on house arrest. But Wanda?" he looked at Vision. "Sam? Natasha?" He looked at Rhodes. "How do I justify that? I can't get them involved. This is my fault. I need to figure it out."

"So, we call him," Rhodes said again.

"Did you hear anything I just said?" Tony asked.

"Yes… we call him," Rhodes gave Tony a pointed look and continued before Tony could argue again. "If you're worried, then we call Steve. We warn him, tell him what's happening. He can warn the others. They go deep into hiding, somewhere Ross can't get to them."

"You really think Steve would stay out of it?" Tony asked. "He and the others will get involved, you know they will."

"But it would be their choice…" Vision offered. "Perhaps it is not our place to choose for them."

Tony was pacing and shaking his head. "If only we had been able to get through to King T'Challa," he said, referring to the Black Panther. "If he gets our message, maybe he can help…"

"You heard what's on the news, Tony," Rhodes said. "Wakanda is opening their borders. I imagine he has his hands full right now."

Before they could continue their conversation, Pepper stepped into the room. Tony wondered if she had somehow been listening to their conversation because she was carrying a familiar black flip phone in her hands.

"May is resting," she said, walking up to Tony. She held out the phone for him, "I grabbed this from our room. I think you should have it with you."

Tony just looked at her, then turned to the others in the room.

It seemed the choice was made. "What if this turns bad?" Tony asked. "It could be taken out on Peter!"

"What if it can help?" Pepper countered back.

Tony took the flip phone and stared at it. He looked back at Pepper. He noticed she had a strange look on her face. Was it guilt? It was strange, but Tony figured she probably felt bad for forcing him to make this call.

He opened up the phone and scrolled to Steve's number. He didn't even get to hit the "call" button.

"Sir," FRIDAY called to him. "It seems Ross has come back early."

"Damn it!" Tony cursed. He looked at the others in the room.

"We go up and face him together. He can't be down here." He sighed, filled with regret.

He looked at Rhodes, "It's too late. There's going to be no warning for the others now." He shoved the phone into his pocket and moved towards the elevator to go up to the helipad. The others followed closely behind.

As they all got on the elevator, he added, "I think we're officially out of options."

However, Tony often had a way of forgetting—someone was always watching his back. Not all was lost, and Tony would learn the meaning of family once again.

**Author's Note:**

> I will be posting this chapter by chapter. You're welcome to read the original work; however, I intend to make this a more improved version of the original work. Please review and let me know your thoughts.


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